Of Wooden Ships & Iron Men
by Christie Redfield
Summary: Post 2x01. Co-Written w/David Wesker. Pete and Myka are sent to Paris to retrieve the legendary Iron Mask, and it's not long before they soon find themselves faced with some competition who also want the mask, who may or may not be rogue Warehouse agents!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Warehouse 13 is © SyFy and the show's creator(s). No copyright infringement is intended whatsoever nor is any profit being made from this fanfic; i.e. it is purely non-profit.

Claimer: The only thing David or myself own is this story, and the characters Pierre Dumeaux and Nariko Lian; they are our own creations, created specifically for this story.

Spoilers: Season 1 of Warehouse 13, and the episode Time Will Tell.

Feedback: Love it, live for it, cherish it.

Category: Supernatural/Romance

Rating: T

Summary: Post 2x01. Co-Written w/David Wesker. Pete and Myka are sent to Paris to retrieve the legendary Iron Mask, and it's not long before they soon find themselves faced with some competition who also want the mask, who may or may not be rogue Warehouse agents!

Author(s) Notes: Though this can be read as a standalone, the events in this story tie loosely into the events of me and Dave's previous stories, _Magic_ and _Matters of the Heart_ respectively.

Of Wooden Ships & Iron Men

By Christie Redfield & David Wesker

Myka Bering sighed as she surveyed the literal disaster area inside the Warehouse. Like it or not, the destruction of the umbilicus meant taking the long way in and out, and more importantly inventory. Somewhere off in the other areas of the Warehouse, Pete and Claudia were going up and down the aisles, seeking out any nasty surprises that MacPherson had left lying around. The last thing any of them wanted was to be trapped inside the Warehouse with a few misfit artifacts acting on the fritz again. Death by dodge ball? So not cool.

Pausing, Myka set her clipboard off to the side as she spied a long sword, medieval in design, leaning against a fallen steel girder and snapped on a pair of purple gloves before cautiously picking it up. As she knelt to pick up the fallen scabbard, the blade emitted a trilling noise, almost like a flute. Intrigued, Myka swung the blade out in front of her carefully, and she couldn't help but smile, it was as though the blade was actually singing. Chancing a glance over her shoulder, Myka took a few swipes in the air, her movements smooth and fluid, as were the notes accompanying it. She froze as she heard a voice call out behind her.

"Easy there, Beatrix!" Laughed Pete. "Got bored did we?"

"It was the sword, honest!" Crap what was she doing? Inventory? Right, right inventory. Stooping to a kneel, Myka quickly grabbed the scabbard and sheathed the sword carefully. She pointed at her partner with the hilt, a wide grin on his face. "Don't even start with me!"

"I can dig it, chica," Chuckled Pete. "You got carried away. It's ok."

"It's distracting, I just picked it up, and it well…sang…" She shrugged sheepishly, before she walked over to an intact shelf and set the sword carefully atop it. Myka reached into her pocket to extract her portable electronic neutralization device and ran it over the blade before she pocketed the device. Myka jotted something down onto her clipboard before she tore the piece of paper off, and slid it into the placeholder.

"So what makes it sing like that?"

"It sings if the user is pure of heart, and supposedly only for its destined owner," Myka frowned, and straightened the placeholder slightly, and smiled in approval. "Then again given all the craziness that has been going on around here it could've been on the fritz for all I know."

"Maybe it just likes you," Teased Pete as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

Myka smiled slightly as she batted his hand away as he reached for it. "Weren't you supposed to be doing inventory or did you ditch Claudia?"

"She's kind of hopped up on energy drinks or something," said Pete. "Thought I would come and help out my ninja partner for a while."

"She just needs to cool down, give her time, it's been way too crazy around here lately..." She ducked her head as she spoke softly, "…for all of us."

"Hey, but we made it right?" Smiled Pete. "We're all here. We just have some remodeling to do. A little dusting, a little paint here and there..."

"Yeah we did, didn't we?" Myka smiled back as she nuzzled his neck. She sighed tiredly as she cast a glance across the shelves. "C'mon partner…let's get this done and over with, the sooner the better." Pete gave Myka soft kiss before he released her from his embrace, and the pair made their way down the aisles, resuming the long and tedious task that was inventory.

The two worked on inventory for three more hours. Three hours of searching, climbing, chasing, sorting and writing. Thankfully the Dark Vault area had not been affected by the incursion. Now it was just a matter of finding everything and then finding a solid shelf to put it on.

"Do you see Bobby Fisher's knight down there?" Asked Pete. "The black one?"

"Got it!" Called Myka.

She handed the piece to Pete who put it in place on the chessboard. As soon as he set it down, the pieces began to move on their own. Pete shook his head and called down to Myka. "Done here!"

Myka spoke to herself quietly as she glanced over her clipboard, checking each item over carefully. She nodded at Pete as he climbed down the stepstool. "I think we're good here, the rest is up to Claudia on her end."

"Cool," Said Pete as he stepped down from the shelves. "Let's go see if Leena made any cookies."

"What about Claudia? Shouldn't we call her first?" Asked Myka.

"Yeah, we will call Claudia," Said Pete. "After we get to the B&B when the cookies are in my hand."

"Just be sure to save us some this time cookie monster." Myka replied in jest.

"Heh heh," Said Pete. "Come Batgirl! To the Batmobile!"

Pete started off at a run through the Warehouse singing the theme to the old sixties Batman TV show and laughing.

Shaking her head, Myka smiled before she took off after Pete. Several minutes later the pair found themselves back outside, having to take the long way out with the umbilicus being destroyed. Pete all but jumped across the hood of their black SUV, and she dove into the passenger's side as he started up the engine. Both were tired and looking forward to just kicking up their heels and relaxing upon their return to the B&B.

Pete turned on the air conditioner and then the radio. Van Halen's Panama came through the speakers. Pulling away from the Warehouse, Pete headed for the B&B. They made decent time and Pete parked around the side of the building as usual and the two agents got out.

Myka smiled slightly as Pete wrapped an arm around her waist as he came around the front of the SUV, and she nuzzled his cheek. She wrapped an arm around his waist as she spoke softly, "Don't get too comfortable." She chided as they walked up the driveway of the B&B.

"What's up?"

"Fraternization could be frowned upon in The Manual for all we know, never mind our original professions…" She spoke quietly, "I'm not even sure we should say anything…"

"You don't think they know?" Asked Pete.

"It's not that I don't think they know, but what if they think it'll cloud our judgment, being emotionally attached to each other when we work a case?" She asked worriedly.

"Hasn't hurt us so far," Said Pete. "I think it's put us more in sync."

"Maybe you're right; I just don't want anything to happen to you because of me…"

"Aww," Pete said as he pulled Myka close. "And the same goes for you."

"You're just looking for an excuse to cuddle again," She teased him as they passed under the shade of a tall willow tree. Pete pulled Myka close, "Always," He smiled as he nuzzled her nose playfully.

The weekend they had returned from Pittsburgh the pair found themselves camped out back in the den late at night with a couple of movies, eventually winding up back in each other's arms. The following weekend they found themselves more engrossed in each other than the movie. The weekend after, they spent the night in each other's arms, skipping the movie entirely.

Since then, they often found themselves curled up in each other's arms, nearly every night now. Frankly, it was a habit either was finding hard to break.

After talking together for a few more minutes and sharing more than a few kisses, the pair made their way towards the building. It was quiet around there, but it usually was from the outside. They made their way up onto the porch and through the front door.

"Hello," said Pete. 'We're home!"

The pair pulled away from each other as they entered the kitchen finding it empty, save for a plate of cookies. Pete grabbed two as Myka wandered over to the fridge to retrieve the milk, and Pete scoured the cabinets for glasses.

"Where do you suppose Leena is?" Pete mumbled in between bites as he pulled out two glasses for them both.

Myka shrugged as she stepped away from the fridge and she filled the two glasses. "I don't know…you don't think she's feeling any nasty side effects of that pearl thing do you?" Myka asked worriedly.

"Possibly," Said Pete. "Claudia has had some trouble letting it go."

The two agents sat down at the kitchen table with their milk and cookies and relaxed. Pete looked around casually as they sat in silence.

"Odd that there is no note," He said quietly.

"She did mention having to run in to town for some supplies, maybe she had some extra errands to run while she was there." Myka replied with a shrug of her shoulders as she nibbled on a cookie.

"Maybe, but she's already been gone a while," Pete commented. "Maybe she is lying down?"

"Well if she's not back when we finish we should go look for her just to be safe." Myka stated.

Pete and Myka stood up from the table and Pete finished the last of the cookies as Myka washed the glasses. She turned around and saw the empty plate and put her hands on her hips, giving him a look.

"What?"

"Claudia?"

"I saved you one," Said Pete, producing a cookie.

Myka stared at him for a moment, giving him a sideways glance before she smiled and snatched the cookie. Pete followed her through the living room and up the stairs towards the bedrooms.

"Leena?" Pete called out.

"Leena are you up here?" Myka called out as well.

The pair exchanged glances as they received no reply, and wandered off in the direction of the innkeeper's bedroom. Cautiously the pair approached the door, and just as Pete raised his hand to knock, a familiar voice startled them both.

"Leena?" Asked Pete. "There you are!"

"I'm sorry, I was lying down. I just woke up when I heard you both come in." She replied apologetically, and she grimaced slightly as she touched a hand to her forehead.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm just feeling a little off is all, Mrs. Frederic said it'll be a few days or so before I'm back to my old self," Leena replied as she held up her hands and she smiled at the two agents apologetically. "I'm alright, don't worry."

Myka pulled Leena into a hug, "Just don't go scaring us like that again, we were really getting worried." Stated Myka.

Leena couldn't help but smile as Pete hugged her next, touched by their concern. "Yeah Leena, that and the whole sneaking up behind us thing also…" At his remark, Myka swatted her partner's arm, "PETE!"

Pete shrugged. "Well she scared me! Both times!"

Leena shook her head, and chuckled, "Oh you two, anyway I better head downstairs and start preparing dinner for later." She replied before she headed towards the stairs, she paused as she neared the top step, "Any idea when Artie's supposed to be getting back? He's been gone all day."

Pete shrugged and looked to Myka who did the same.

Shrugging Leena replied, "He'll probably be back sooner or later, though knowing him, who knows when that'll be. If you guys need anything I'll be downstairs."

"See ya."

Myka shrugged and wandered off in the direction of her room, her partner disappeared in the direction of the bathroom. Myka paused as she stepped inside her room, her brow furrowing and she promptly exited her room, padding across the hall to her partner's room. Myka gave a small sigh of relief, smiling as she spied a leather-bound book resting atop the nightstand.

"There you are." Myka walked over to the nightstand and snatched up her book. She giggled as she felt a set of warm, strong arms encircle her waist, and she set her book back down. Pete's warm breath tickled her ear as he spoke softly.

"Caught ya," Pete started.

"Like you haven't made up your fair share of excuses for sneaking over to my room," She chided as she nuzzled his neck, and leaned into the embrace, sighing contentedly as Pete held her.

"Want to make out?" He asked, chuckling.

"We could _try_ and watch a movie," She suggested quietly.

"Oh, I like it when we _try_ that."

Myka turned in his arms, and looped her arms around his neck. She nuzzled his nose as he pulled her close, "You know what I meant by that, don't you go trying to play dumb with me."

"Not what I had in mind..." Pete whispered as his hands came to rest on the small of her back, and he pulled her closer for a long, passionate kiss. Myka threaded her hands through Pete's hair as the kiss intensified. The two lost themselves to each other in the moment, the world not seeming to exist around them.

Pete nuzzled Myka's nose as he broke off the kiss, and Myka shivered as Pete softly kissed her ear, before he proceeded to trail kisses down her jawline, "Still feel like trying to watch a movie?" He teased as he captured her lips in a soft kiss.

Myka smiled as she broke off the kiss, "I don't know…you're making me have second thoughts…"

The pair froze as they heard the door slam shut loudly from downstairs, followed by what sounded vaguely like yelling, and more yelling still. Both cringed as they heard what sounded like Claudia's voice from out in the hall followed by Artie's voice. Clearly she was still on the warpath.

"I guess we forgot to call her," Said Pete. "Oops."

"We should probably head downstairs, she's mad, he's likely mad…" Myka sighed as she rested her head against his shoulder. Pete nodded, and the pair reluctantly parted from their embrace.

Pete and Myka made their way downstairs. As they passed through the living room, they could hear Claudia talking.

"Left me there, man!" She said. "Just cold! And, look, they ate all the cookies!"

"I will make more later," Said Artie. "Calm yourself."

"But...!"

"Ah-buh-buh-buh!" Said Artie. "Ssh! We have larger concerns here, okay? Go and see if Leena has some cake or brownies or something. I need time to hear myself think!" Replied Artie in tired annoyance.

"Whatever, dude," said Claudia. "Brownies? Shuh!"

Pete and Myka walked into the dining area just as Claudia left, the kitchen door still swinging on its hinges. Artie let out a loud sigh as he sat at the table, the bridge of his nose pinched between his thumb and forefinger. He looked up as he heard Pete and Myka come in and replaced his glasses.

"There you two are," He started. "How is the inventory coming?"

"We catalogued two sectors," Said Pete. "Catching some of the artifacts is slowing us down a bit. Stupid wallet..."

"Good work," Said Artie. "Unfortunately, we will have to put much of that on hold for the time being."

"We've got a new case?" Asked Myka.

"Yes," Nodded Artie. "We have another rogue artifact at work. Sit down and I'll explain."

Pete and Myka pulled out two chairs, promptly taking a seat at the table. Artie reached into his bag, extracting two manila folders, one for each agent which he passed to them. Myka's eyes grew wide as she read over the file, "L'Homme au Masque de Fer?" Pete cast a confused glance in her direction, and she promptly translated, "The Man in the Iron Mask."

"Oh," Said Pete. "Didn't really like the movie. So, who was he really?"

"Nobody really knows who he was, there are several theories. Voltaire claimed that the prisoner was the older, illegitimate brother of Louis XIV, and according to the final installment of The Three Musketeers saga, he was the king's twin brother, which was elaborated upon by the writer Alexandre Dumas in the story."

"I read the book, but that was back in high school," Said Pete. "Much different from the film?"

"There are some similarities between the book and the movie but…"

"Agents..." Said Artie with measured patience.

The two agents paused, their eyes falling back on their boss, quickly apologizing.

"If one were to read the file, one would see that this mission involves two artifacts."

"There's a second artifact involved, which artifact?" Myka asked as she flipped through the manila folder, she paused when she came upon the photograph of a key, "Voltaire's Key?" She asked as she looked in Artie's direction.

"Ah, a light shines."

"So where do you think this thing is?" Pete asked as he laced his hands behind his head.

"My research points to Paris," Said Artie.

"Figures. See normal people vacation in exotic locations, we get sent to them to chase evil possessed flying toasters." Remarked Pete cynically.

"C'est la vie, mon ami," Said Artie.

Myka sighed as she leaned back in her chair, Pete's expression mirrored hers. "Ah Paris…" Started Pete. "Evil guillotine, moody partner, even moodier French security guards, not happy times."

"Not to mention I had to translate for us both." Replied Myka pointedly.

Pete held up his hands, "I've been studying up, remember?"

"If you two are done?" Said Artie, looking at them over his glasses. When he had the attention of the two agents, he handed them an envelope. Pete took the offered envelope and peered inside, finding a number of French currencies. "Your expenses. Do not go crazy." He remarked, punctuating each word for added emphasis.

Pete pointed at himself as if to say, "who me?" Artie gave him a look and Pete just smiled back.

"So, when do we leave?"

"As soon as possible," Said Artie.

Both agents rose up from the table, taking their folders with them, and the smaller envelope.

"Agents," Started Artie. "Remember. Pragmatism."

"Right right right, no fancy schmancy places, and no burlesque houses…" Replied Pete, he held up his hands at his boss's stone-faced expression, "Kidding!"

"Be safe out there."

The pair made their way back upstairs, both agents detouring to their respective rooms. A scant few minutes later, both exited, travel bags in hand. Out of habit, and preparedness, both kept prepacked bags ready for occasions such as these. Both trotted downstairs, and headed outside to their SUV.

Myka looked pointedly at her partner as they tossed their bags in the back, "Do yourself a favor this time, try and sleep on the flight. I don't want you dragging ass like you were back in England."

"Oh, I wasn't dragging," Said Pete. "I had my groove on! H.G. Wells was all over me. Schwing!"

"And I…wait a minute…" Myka paused, and she turned to face her partner, she slowly lifted up her shades, "…she did _what_, exactly?"

Pete slowly pulled off his shades, "She _tried_ to kiss me, emphasis on tried." Pete fidgeted with his sunglasses, his partner's gaze unwavering as he continued to speak, "I was pushing her away when you called out to me. The next thing I knew she caught me off guard and I had the Tesla to my throat."

"She was hitting on you?"

"Yup," Said Pete. "You're not mad at me are you? Sorry, Myka..."

"I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at that snake!" Seethed Myka, "The nerve of that woman!"

Pete pulled Myka close and gave her a soft kiss on the lips. "I guess I was a fool there, huh?"

Myka smiled slightly, lovingly returning the kiss, "Just remember, you're not just any fool, you're _my_ fool." She replied, drawing a slight smile from Pete, he nuzzled her nose playfully in reply.

"Only a fool for loving you, cher," Pete replied using a little French for added measure. He smiled as he drew a chuckle from Myka. He gave her another kiss before pulling away, he to the driver's side door, and she to the passenger side.

"Been reading X-Men comics," Said Pete. "Gambit speaks French."

Myka looked at Pete through her shades and shook her head, a small smile forming on her lips. Pete definitely lived in his own version of the world. Still, that was ok. He was intelligent, funny, brave and he had her back. Always, without question. His vibes had saved them more than once on a mission.

Once everyone was situated Pete pulled away from the B&B and headed out towards the airport. Pete slipped in his own personal road trip mix CD into the player. _Welcome to the Jungle_ by Guns N' Roses came forth a few seconds later. Pete tapped his hand on the steering wheel as he drove along.


	2. Chapter 2

Hours later, the pair arrived in Paris, France. Even this late into the evening, the city was still alive, buzzing with life. Unfortunately there was not much either could do at this hour; the case would have to wait until morning. For now they were faced with the simple task of securing lodgings. It was times like these both wondered why their boss never considered booking hotels along with their plane tickets; it'd be easier wouldn't it?

After a long flight and then coming through customs at de Gaulle, the two agents were very tired. They took a taxi south to Paris which was also a harrowing trip. With all of the French being spoken, Pete's head was nearly swimming. Myka seemed to be at least tolerating things.

The taxi, after some discussion and a few phone calls, took them to the Best Western Left Bank St Germain. There the two agents exited the taxi with Pete paying the driver. Entering the hotel, they walked directly, but tiredly to the main desk and inquired about accommodations.

"We do indeed have a room available," Said the clerk with a smile.

"Great," Said Myka. "We'll take it."

"It is Le Grande Suite number one-zero-two." She said as she handed them the key.

Pete and Myka looked at each other. Artie was most likely going to have a cow when he heard about the cost, but that was how it was going to be if he wanted the job done. Pete paid for the room and the two agents followed their porter to an elevator that led to their floor. They were taken to their room and shown around.

The suite truly was grand. It had a large balcony, a living room area with TV and stereo system. The kitchen was fully loaded with a large refrigerator, a stove, dishwasher, a large stainless steel double sink and marble countertops. The sprawling bathroom had a huge sunken tub and white marble floor. In the middle of the tub was a fountain. The bedroom was a whole other world unto itself with a music system and wine refrigerator.

"Madame, monsieur," Said the porter as he bowed to leave. Pete gave him a tip and the two agents were left alone.

"Shower first," Said Pete. "Then I eat something before I hit the sack."

"Should I write out our wills for the time being then?" Replied Myka dryly as she stretched tiredly, using one hand to rub the back of her neck.

"We could cut some costs," Said Pete as he looked at the bathroom. "Save water too. Go planet."

"Did you just reference Captain Planet?" She asked raising an eyebrow.

"Ugh no." said Pete.

"Just checking," She replied with a wink, before she darted off to the bathroom. Pete darted off after her.

Roughly an hour later, the duo showered and changed, and now sat pondering over brochures, trying to decide whether or not to brave ordering French cuisine, or just play it safe and order room service. They'd have to stock the fridge themselves later, at current the only thing it housed was ice cubes.

"So, what do you have a taste for, I'm not really hungry, you?" Asked Myka.

"Something light," Said Pete. "Maybe a steak with a baked potato. Cheese on top. Dr. Pepper."

"I'll order the stuff, save you the headache of screwing it up in French," She replied playfully swatting his arm as she grabbed the phone to place in the order for room service. The chances of finding a place open this late we're slim to none.

While Myka ordered the room service, Pete went over to check out the stereo. It was a digital job and held many types of music from gospel to rock and rap to bluegrass. Pete pushes some of the buttons, not feeling struck by any particular thing. He stopped at jazz instrumentals and poked around for a moment. Finding some that he liked, he set it to play nice and low. Quiet, relaxing mood music.

Something to help them wind down from a hectic day. As the music played softly through the air, Pete returned to the couch where Myka was sitting and sunk down into the cushions. Wow, did that ever feel good. The sofa, the music, the French and the smell of Myka's shampooed hair all coming together. Pete closed his eyes and let himself have a smile.

Myka hung up the phone, once she had finished placing their orders. "They said it'll be about fifteen to twenty minutes. We got lucky; the kitchen was going to close in another hour."

Sighing Myka leaned back against the cushions, and she turned on her side, smiling slightly as she ruffled Pete's hair softly. "Couldn't sleep on the flight either huh?" She spoke quietly.

"Too much reading," Said Pete.

"You read the entire file?" Asked Myka.

"Probably most of it," Pete replied. "My eyes were swimming for a while there."

"Hope you took notes, there'll be a quiz later." Replied Myka, her tone dead serious. She broke into laughter at Pete's tired expression. "I was joking."

"Well, someone isn't as tired as they said," Said Pete, pulling Myka over to him. "And she made a joke!"

"Look's who's talking," She chided, nuzzling his nose.

Pete ran his fingers through her hair. It was shiny and silky in his hands. Cupping the side of her face with one hand, Pete kissed her softly on the lips and pulled back, smiling slightly. Who knew, right? Him and Myka, almost total opposites.

Myka smiled, resting her forehead against Pete's. The last person she expected to let herself get involved with was her partner, again, especially after events long since passed. Even when they had just started working together, Pete had put his complete and total trust in her, knowing one way or another she'd have his back whether he liked it or not. And now here they were, closer to each other even still.

"Is the music okay?" Asked Pete.

"I put up listening to Van Halen haven't I?" Remarked Myka, drawing a chuckle from Pete.

"That you have," Said Pete. "And Steven Seagal movies. One more miracle and we shall have to have you sainted."

"I didn't have much choice that night; you all but dragged me downstairs." She chuckled as she kissed him softly.

"Yeah, but you stayed," Pete replied as he kissed the tip of her nose.

"Of course I stayed, I'm sorry I used you as my pillow." She replied blushing.

"I didn't mind."

"You sure?" She asked in jest as she nuzzled his nose.

"Positive." He whispered quietly as he smiled at her adoringly.

Myka returned his smile as she leaned in to kiss Pete softly. The pair looked up as they heard a knock sound, likely the room service they ordered.

"I'll get it, can I get up now?"

Pete raised an eyebrow and smiled. Slipping an arm under Myka's legs, Pete picked her up as he stood up from the couch and carried her to the door. There he set her down and kissed the back of her neck before darting away to the sofa again.

Myka shook her head, and smiled, before she turned to answer the door, a porter greeted her, holding a tray, "Deux pour Lattimer?"

Myka nodded, "Oui, juste le partir sur la table s'il vous plaît." The porter carried the tray over to the table and set it down, before he turned to Myka, who handed him a tip.

"Merci, apprécier." He replied leaving the pair alone.

"What did you get?" asked Pete as he walked over to the table.

"Shrimp stir-fry and an iced tea."

"Chinese food in France," Said Pete. "There again, I went with classic American meat and potato."

Pete removed the cover from Myka's dish and studied it. It smelled quite good, actually. Taking up a fork, he scooped some of the shrimp fried rice and winked at Myka, feeding it to her.

"How is it?"

Myka smiled at Pete, "Tasty," She scooped up some of the shrimp fried rice onto her fork, and she offered it to Pete, as he did to her, and he grasped her fork hand gently, eating the offered food, "So?"

"Not bad," remarked Pete with a nod.

Removing the lid from his dish, Pete cut off two small pieces from his steak. He offered one to Myka and then tasted the other for himself. The cooking staff here really knew what they were doing.

The two agents sat down at the table and distributed their food. A bottle of wine had also been added to their order, compliments of the hotel. Pete figured the wine was because they were occupying a rather expensive suite. Images of Artie flashed in front of him.

After enjoying their meal and some wine, or in Pete's case Dr. Pepper, the duo retired to the sofa once again. They both stretched out, Myka in Pete's arms. They listened to the music and talked of their experience in the city thus far as well as Claudia's sudden change from angry to elated when she realized she would be getting Parisian souvenirs.

Without knowing it, they both drifted off to sleep there on the sofa as jazz notes glided softly over them.


	3. Chapter 3

The soft rays of sunlight peeked under the curtains of the room, casting a gentle light on its occupants. Myka awoke slowly, the warm rays of the sunlight gently touching her face. Tiredly, she rubbed the sleep from her eyes; she smiled as her eyes fell upon Pete, sleeping soundly. Myka traced her fingers down his face lovingly. Leaning forward, Myka kissed him softly.

Pete began to stir slightly, a smile coming to his face. As Pete started to open his eyes, the quiet air was shattered by the tinny buzzing sound of the Farnsworth. Pete jerked awake.

"I left four cookies!" He almost yelled. "Oh crap. Whew."

"Should I deliver the bad news, or do you wanna do the honors?" Asked Myka.

Pete reached for his jacket from a nearby chair and extracted the Farnsworth from his pocket. Opening it, he found Artie staring at him.

"A suite?" Artie started.

"Umm, hey Artie," Said Pete. "How ya doing?"

"A suite!" He asked again, "Whatever happened to a little something called I don't know common sense?" Their boss all but shouted.

"Whoa, Artie, chill," Said Pete.

"Chill?" Artie repeated. "Chill? Have you seen the bill?"

"Hey man, it was the only thing available," Said Pete. "We called ten other hotels in the area. Booked solid for a doctor's convention."

"Finish this mission quickly, agents." Artie took off his glasses for a moment and then put them back on. "Report in four hours. Good luck."

Artie turned off his Farnsworth and Pete looked at a black screen for a moment before doing the same with his. He and Myka looked at each other for a moment.

"Not as bad as I thought it was going to be," Pete remarked slowly.

"You say that now, wait 'til we get our next paycheck."

At her remark, Pete cringed. "Ouch."

She nodded, "Yeah, you see what I mean?"

"May as well live it up now," Said Pete. "What do you want for breakfast?"

"Well if you put it that way, Eggs Florentine. Coffee would be great too." Replied Myka as she stretched. "Should I put in the order, or do you think you can handle it Gambit?" She teased.

"I can handle it," Said Pete flashing Myka a debonair smile. He walked over to the phone on the next table and picked it up. A button press later and he was talking with room service. With the use of his memory, an English-French dictionary and a comic book, he managed to put the order in. He hoped, anyway.

Myka walked in the direction of the balcony, and pushed the door open while Pete placed their orders for breakfast. She stretched languidly as she rested her arms on the railing of the balcony, it was still early. The sun had only just begun to rise. She cast a glance over her shoulder as she heard Pete approach. "Manage okay?"

"I hope so," Said Pete. "Still breaking off the rough edges, cher."

"You know, I could always help you, mon amour." She replied with a smile.

"Gotta learn," Said Pete as he dropped into one of the balcony's chairs. "What a view, eh? Maybe we should go over the file out here."

"Oui," Replied Myka, she turned on her heel to reenter the room, "I'll grab the files, and we'll work on your French lessons later." She remarked, kissing his cheek softly.

"I could think of one thing I wouldn't mind working on right now," Said Pete to himself.

"I heard that!" Called out Myka as she reappeared with the files in hand. "Focus."

"Absolutely," Nodded Pete, his expression serious. Then a smile stole back across his face. "Anyway, file. Let's keep an ear for the door though, huh? I'm hungry."

Myka sat down in the empty chair, flipping open the file folder, "It'll get here, try to refrain from gnawing off my foot in the meantime." She remarked as she studied the file.

Pete leaned over and kissed her neck before opening his copy of the file. "Ok, iron mask. Supposed illegitimate son who may or may not be a twin brother. With any legend there is some fact. What do we know for sure?"

Myka set down the file, gesturing with her hands as she spoke, "Well for one, it's a full head mask. It doesn't cover just the front of the wearer's face, but rather their entire head." She stated swiping one hand down her face, and the other behind her head.

Pete waited for some time, looking at Myka.

"Meaning, whoever is wearing it, will not be able to pull it off easily, supposedly it was two separate pieces, front and back," She picked up the file flipping to the photograph of Voltaire's Key. "And usually the only way to hold the mask together was to lock it, with say a key."

"The other artifact in question," Nodded Pete. "Do we know what this armor supposedly does?"

Myka shrugged, "No idea, but whoever was wearing the mask, they would not be able to do much, can't eat, can't drink, instant claustrophobia?"

"So then both artifacts are together?"

"It seems the most logical, how else could the wearer use the artifact?" Myka rested her chin on her hand, "Unless someone is using it for more nefarious purposes, it was originally intended as a torture device."

"Which leaves us with two possibilities," Started Pete. "Either we have an unwilling participant or a really bad dude running around..."

"Either way, it spells bad news," Replied Myka, "So, I'm all for ideas as to where you think we should start looking, perhaps the local PD?"

"I...don't think two Americans are going to get a lot of cooperation from the French police, stories of evil artifacts aside," Started Pete. "More than likely they'll ace us out of the investigation."

Myka cringed, "Good point."

"Why don't we go and take a look around on our own?" Suggested Pete. "A couple of tourists. Lovers. See if we can smell any fudge."

"There's no way of knowing if we'll even find anything, but it's a start, right?"

"Couldn't hurt."

Myka stood up as she heard a knock, and collected the files. She gasped in shock as Pete grasped her hand, and pulled her into his lap. "Pete, the door…" She started, and Pete took the files from her hand, setting them back down on the table.

"It's cool, let 'em stew a minute." He whispered, tracing his fingers through her curly locks. Myka shivered as Pete wrapped his arms around her waist, trailing gentle kisses along her neck, before he turned her face towards his and he kissed her lovingly. Upon hearing a second set of knocks sound, the pair parted. Myka gently traced kisses along his jaw, then down his throat, prompting a low chuckle from Pete.

"I think I have a Love Monster on my hands."

"Really?" She answered coyly, "Now whose fault would that be I wonder?"

"I accept full responsibility," Said Pete with a wink. "And all consequences."

The pair made their way to the door and opened it to find the porter there with a cart. They both smiled, albeit a little sheepishly. The porter smiled and brought the cart in at Myka's request, setting their dishes on the table. Pete gave him a good tip. The man smiled at them.

"Paris, non?" He said with a slight bow. "Merci."

The porter left the two alone and the two agents looked at each other. After a few seconds they laughed and went to their breakfast. As it turned out, somewhat to Myka's surprise, the order arrived as she had asked. Eggs Florentine, toast, orange juice, a ham and cheese omelette, and a bowl of diced mixed fruit and coffee.

"Hey," Said Pete. "How about that."

Myka turned to Pete and put her arms around his neck, looking into his eyes. She leaned in and softly kissed Pete's lips. "How about that."

The two stood by the breakfast table for some time, locked in a kiss. Pete's hands on Myka's hips, his thumbs tracing the contour of her stomach. After a few moments Pete pulled back and smiled as he rested his forehead against hers.

"We better get to breakfast before it gets cold," He started. "Besides, I have a feeling we'll need the energy for later."

Myka raised her eyebrow coyly at the double meaning of Pete's statement and placed a final, feather-soft kiss on Pete's neck before she turned towards the breakfast table. She nearly jumped when Pete, in turn, kissed the small of her back. With a wink from him, they sat down at the table and began to eat. They were both surprisingly hungry.

"Of all the places to learn French, I can't believe you learned it from reading comic books." Myka commented in between bites of her breakfast.

"Not entirely," Said Pete. "But the roguish gambler and thief did help."

"He's a thief? That doesn't exactly sound like a superhero."

"Well, he was a thief before he joined the X-Men," Started Pete. "And he's a mutant, not a superhero."

"I can't believe I'm having this conversation with you," Replied Myka with a shake of her head as she took a drink of her orange juice, prompting a smile from Pete. "Don't tell me, the whole nonconformist, rebel thing is the appeal of the character right?"

"There's that," Said Pete. "He's got this cool, suave thing going on and he's got this hot chick. Sort of."

"Sort of? They have one of those on-again-off-again relationships?"

"It's complicated."

"Complicated, what you mean because of their superhero powers or something?" She asked with a shrug as she nibbled on her toast.

"Mutant."

"Mutants, superheroes, whatever, I read _real _books, remember?" She replied pointedly.

"Don't underestimate the importance of comics," Said Pete. "They can be educational as well as inspiring. Anyway, her powers render her unable to touch anyone or she'll steal their life force and memories." He took a few more bites of his breakfast before he continued, gesturing with his fork as he spoke, "Needless to say, a kiss from her could put someone in a coma. That didn't stop Gambit from trying to win her over though," He smiled slightly, "Hence the complicated part; a kiss from her would quite literally leave the Cajun breathless."

"I can only imagine what life must have been like for her, unable to enjoy all the little things we take for granted, a handshake, holding hands, being able to share a kiss with someone you love…" Replied Myka as she ate the rest of her toast, thinking over what her partner had just explained to her. Apparently there was a big difference between mutants and superheroes.

Myka chuckled, "I still can't believe we just had an in-depth conversation about comic book characters."

"Change of subject?"

"Let's not be hasty now," She chided, pointing in his direction with her fork. Pete laughed, and the pair returned to their breakfast, the conversation occasionally falling back on the discussion of superheroes vs. mutants.

"Terrific breakfast."

"That was good; living like this is going to spoil us." Replied Myka as she stood up, and she picked up her plate before she disappeared in the direction of the kitchen. Pete picked up his plate, before he ambled off in the direction the kitchen. He smiled as he spied Myka standing by the sink, cleaning off her plate. Pete stepped behind her, and rinsed off his own plate, having to reach around her to accomplish the task. Myka nuzzled Pete's neck as he set the plates down and turned off the faucet.

"I could get used to washing dishes like this."

Myka smiled up at Pete, and she placed a soft kiss to his neck, before she turned around, and she sat on the counter, "Ready to go gallivanting about the town?" Myka asked as she draped her arms around Pete's neck. Pete smiled slightly as he leaned in to kiss her, "Not just yet…" He whispered softly as his lips found hers.

Pete pulled Myka into his arms as she returned his kiss hungrily. He hooked an arm under her legs for support as she wrapped her legs around his waist, their kisses turning more impassioned with each passing second.

Myka in his arms, Pete walked in the direction of the bedroom as she shifted her kisses to his neck. He practically purred as she ran her fingers through his hair, leaving a trail of kisses in her wake along his neck and up his jawline. Pete tightened his hold on her as she pulled on his earlobe with her teeth lightly, the action causing him to stumble slightly, "Myka!" Pete chuckled.

"You drop me…" She started warningly.

"I know, I know, you'll kick my ass." He replied as he kissed her passionately.

The moment he set foot inside the bedroom he promptly kicked the door shut behind them.


	4. Chapter 4

An hour and a half later found the two agents down on the streets of Paris. Pete was dressed in black slacks with a royal blue polo shirt. Myka was dressed in a lavender sundress. They tried to look touristy without looking like bumbling idiots. They decided to begin by visiting a museum that had a section devoted to the period from which their artifact hailed.

Slipping on his shades, Pete stowed his Tourist's Guide to Paris book in his back pocket and cracked his knuckles.

"We better locate a grocery store or something," said Pete. "We can cut costs by buying food from there and taking it back. Might be fun to do some cooking in Paris."

"That sounds like a great idea," Myka nodded in agreement.

"Particularly if we can cook like we wash dishes."

"Oh Pete!" Myka chuckled, "What's gotten into you?"

"It might be the city," chuckled Pete.

"Just remember, we're on a case, not on vacation." She replied pointedly, at her remark, he snapped his fingers.

"Oh yeah," said Pete as he set his watch timer. "Need to check in with Artie soon."

"The Musée Carnavalet has an exhibition devoted to the more obscure items of the French Revolution. We should be able to find out more information on the history of our artifact there." Spoke Myka enthusiastically. Pete couldn't help but smile. Surround her with classical literature or art and Myka was truly in her element.

"Ok, let's go to that museum," Said Pete. "How do you grab a hold of a taxi here?"

"There's a taxi stand over there, we can get a taxi there."

"Sweet, c'mon."

The pair climbed into a taxi, and after working out a fare, and location, they were soon on their way.

The pair rode in the back seat of the taxi in relative silence. The radio was playing softly, but it was in French. Pete and Myka looked out of the windows at the different sights, taking in the view of the city. A few minutes into the trip, Pete felt Myka's hand on his. He took her hand and gave it a soft squeeze, before kissing it.

Several minutes later, the pair found themselves outside in front of The Musée Carnavalet. The place itself appeared to be more of a fortress than a museum to the naked eye. Not to mention the fact that they would probably a need map alone just to navigate once inside.

"Wow," Said Pete. "Beats The Carnegie."

Pete paid for their fare, before he exited the taxi, and he turned around, holding out his hand for Myka.

"Peux-je vous aider, mon cher?" Pete asked.

Myka chuckled as she grasped her partner's hand, smiling at him as he helped her out of the taxi, "Merci beaucoup, mon amour." She replied to him in flawless French.

The pair made their way into the museum, stopping to purchase a map of the place before they left the lobby area. Pete unfolded the map and looked at all of the various exhibits that were listed.

"We best get started," Remarked Pete.

"Any ideas where we should even start?" Asked Myka.

"Got me," Said Pete. "Saw the movie with DiCaprio. Not exactly an expert on this thing."

For the next hour, the two agents worked at gathering more information, anything that could give them a current link to the mask. What they discovered was that the masked prisoner had lived up until November of 1703 under the name Marchioly.

The prisoner had also been moved around quite often, from The Fortress of Pignerol to The Bastille. Originally the cell designed for him by Bénigne Dauvergne de Saint-Mars was quite complex, consisting of a cell connected to a series of doors, designed to keep others from listening in on conversations. At this time the prisoner was known as Eustache Dauger, a man who was later arrested by Captain Alexandre de Vauroy, garrison commander of Dunkirk, apparently they were not one and the same, in fact even further speculation surrounded his arrest in Calais.

The masked prisoner was moved to Pignerol, and from there the rumors as to his true identity began to circulate. One thing remained for certain; no one would ever know this masked man's true identity, so just who was he exactly? And more importantly, who was currently in possession of the mask?

"Not exactly a wealth of information is it?" Remarked Pete as he looked over the exhibits.

There had been a less than substantial blurb on the iron mask. Most of it basically just said that there were many theories but no answers. Basically the same thing as they had in the file. Pete put his hands on his hips and shook his head.

"What else can we do here?" Asked Pete. "Maybe visit some of the prisons listed in the file?"

"Not a whole lot, I'm afraid." Started Myka, "Pete, I hate tell you this but we're about three hundred years too late, both places are likely nothing more but piles of stones now."

"Great."

Checking her watch, Myka nodded to Pete, "We should check with Artie, see if he knows anything, we're due to check in now any…"

At her remark, Pete's watch beeped, and he nodded, "Better now than never."

Pete opened his Farnsworth and caught sight of Artie's face looking at them. He was his usual disgruntled self and Pete smiled. "Hi Artie."

"Report agents."

"Well, we're at this museum studying up on what they have of the French Revolution and the iron mask. It's been slow."

"So essentially you've both turned up a whole lot of nothing." Replied Artie wryly.

"Info is pretty sketchy on this one Artie," said Pete. "I mean the whole nature of it was shrouded in secrecy, even back then."

Artie sighed, rubbing at his tired eyes, before he turned to his computer, the sounds of his fingers hitting the keys could be heard, "In a situation such as this, there is never such a thing as too much information," He remarked pointing up a finger in the air, as though emphasizing his point.

"Do you have anything for us?" asked Myka.

"However in this instance it looks like I'll need to do some digging of my own, there's quite literally hundreds of theories just on the prisoner's identity alone, if we could somehow establish a link, perhaps then we can find out what became of the mask."

"What is our game plan in the meantime?"

"For now, I would suggest taking a look around town, see if you can learn anything from the locals. It never hurts to explore every possible avenue. Meanwhile I'll try and see if I can dig up anything on my end here."

"Right boss, and don't forget to mind the euro, gotcha." Smiled Pete, before he snapped his Farnsworth shut, and Artie did likewise. Pete turned towards Myka, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"Guess we best get started, huh?" Said Pete. "Maybe stop by a pastry shop or something on the way?"

Myka nodded as she and Pete began to walk back through the building, "Well, we have smelled fudge in stranger places." Commented Myka with a shake of her head, and Pete smiled slightly.

Pete and Myka decided the old fashioned approach was indeed the best way to gather information, better known as burning the shoe leather. And as was to be expected, the locals had their own theories and ideas on the legend behind the man in the iron mask. The pair let themselves fall out of agent mode, falling on the tourist angle as they gathered information. Working the angle even further, Myka stated she was working on a thesis paper.

As they walked down the streets, the pair took in the sights and scenery, discussing the case, and what little information they had managed to garner. Eventually they came to the conclusion that lunch was in order, and for the next half hour they wandered around until they found a corner café, where they sat trading notes.

Lunch was a fairly heavy meal consisting of soup, bread with butter and a meat dish. Myka had salmon and Pete had filet mignon. Pete and Myka discussed what little they knew of the case and Pete also shared what he remembered from the movie. Clearly he was going to have to rewatch it after this case. See what all they had gotten right and wrong.

With lunch finished, the two walked around more, Pete buying Myka a purple beret to go with her dress. They searched the city and had some fun while doing it to keep their spirits up. With some bottles of water, a map, the ambience of the city and their noses as their only tools.

When dusk came on, the two found themselves a taxi stand and made their way back to a small grocery store and then to their hotel. With tired bodies they made their way out of the taxi and up to the front doors of their hotel.

"Heck of a day huh?" said Pete as he held the door open for his partner, a bag of groceries in his other hand. A porter came up to the doors to assist them.

"You can say that again, at least we got to take in some of the sights," Myka replied as she stepped inside the hotel, Pete following after her.

"Yup, we'll stock the fridge and relax a bit before starting dinner."

Myka nodded in approval, "It'll be nice to kick up our heels for the night, speaking of which, I think I'll ditch these shoes later." She stated, in regards to her poor choice of footwear, before she paused, passing one of the bags she held to Pete.

"I love Paris," Commented Pete as he took the bag of groceries from Myka.

As the two agents made their way into the hotel, they heard what sounded like a loud explosion followed by a mass of screaming sirens. Pete and Myka both turned around and looked, seeing the commotion.

"Take a look?" Asked Pete.

"Whatever's going on sounds big, we better check it out, might as well ask the porter to bring our stuff up." Replied Myka.

"Cool," said Pete before turning to the porter with a tip prepared. "Here, take them up to our room, s'il vous plaît."

Pete handed the porter the groceries and followed Myka towards the scene of the disturbance. They hailed another taxi and had it follow the police vehicles. The ride was hectic and jarring but they made it to the scene intact.

There were at least fifteen police vehicles and a large cloud of dust at The Louvre. The area was thick with dust, people and noise. There was a lot of talking and yelling.

"They think it's a terrorist attack," Said Myka, close to Pete's ear.

"That would suck," Pete replied. "Whoa, what is...?"

Pete pointed with his left hand while grabbing for his phone with his right. A large shape began to emerge from the cloud of dust and debris carrying something. Pete readied the camera in his phone and Myka kept an eye on it.

"I think those are...paintings?" Said Myka. "And a bust."

"It's a woman?" Said Pete.

"No, a bust," Myka replied with a roll of her eyes, "A sculpture?"

"Oh," Nodded Pete. "Right."

With his camera ready, Pete began to take pictures of the shape. It was mostly hidden by the dust, but he hoped he would get lucky. The figure stared out over the crowd for a moment and then retreated into cover followed by what sounded like another large explosion. More dust issued forth and the figure was gone.


	5. Chapter 5

"You think that was him?"

"I don't know, but whoever it was they were definitely in a big hurry."

"C'mon," Said Pete. "Let's get back to the hotel. I'll email these to Claudia on the way!"

Myka nodded, "Sounds like a plan, hopefully she can clean up the images, give our mystery a man face, let's go!"

The pair made their way out of the chaos and located another taxi. Within minutes they were back at the hotel. They were just walking into their suite when the Farnsworth sounded off with its tinny buzz. Pete opened it up.

"Artie!"

"I was just calling to check in with you both and…" Artie frowned, suddenly noticing their dusty appearances. "Is there a wave of dust storms circulating through Paris?" He asked, regarding their appearances.

"In a manner of speaking," Said Pete. "I emailed Claudia some video and images. I think we saw...it!"

From the other end of the Farnsworth, the agents could hear Artie hurriedly typing away at his computer, searching for information. "I'll have Claudia dig through any other camera footage that was captured on the scene, but you said you sent pictures to her Pete?"

"And video."

"Did either of you manage to turn up any useful information from the locals?" He asked straightening his glasses.

"Not really," Commented Pete. "Just the same stuff we've read, only in French."

"I'm still researching on my end here. I'm checking the family trees to see if there are any living relatives that could have possible ties to the mask itself. It wouldn't be the first time that a distant relative is out running around causing mischief. Unfortunately it also leaves us with a very long list of candidates; I'm going to need to narrow our selection. I'll have Claudia call you once she clears up the images. Stay safe!"

Pete closed the Farnsworth and placed it back inside his jacket. So now he was tired, keyed-up and dusty. As he looked around, Pete did not see the groceries he had asked the porter to bring up. Shrugging, he walked over to the refrigerator to grab a couple bottles of water. He would call about it later.

Opening the door, Pete ducked down to grab some water when he saw the groceries. Extracting two bottles of water, he opened a cabinet and then checked the bread box. The porter had brought them up and put them away. Heck of a hotel.

"Porter put the groceries away," Said Pete, as he handed Myka a bottle of water. "Weird. Try that in a hotel back home."

Myka took a swig of her water, "For the price of the room alone, probably an extra privilege."

"Come on," Said Pete. "Let's get cleaned up and start dinner. I even got a box of cookies."

Myka smiled at Pete as she capped her water, and set the bottle down on the counter. "I hope you're as good a cook as you are at French." She replied, flashing him a smile, before she headed off in the direction of the bathroom, Pete followed after her.

Showered and changed, the two agents set to work on dinner an hour later, the event itself was truly an experience, putting their language skills to the test as they deciphered ingredients.

Deciding on something relatively simple, the pair made a pasta dish, using fresh tomatoes, mushrooms, garlic, oregano, and basil in the creation of the sauce. Cutting up slices of French bread, the pair seasoned the slices with butter, cheese, and garlic, before placing them in the oven.

Turning to Pete, Myka offered him a spoonful of the sauce, "Feel brave enough to sample my cooking?" She asked, smiling slightly.

"Sure," Said Pete. "Is it spicy?" Tasting the sauce, Pete shook his head, "Definitely not spicy, I think it could do with a little more garlic actually." Myka frowned at his remark before she turned back towards the stove.

"It's pasta sauce, not chili," Started Myka, "Besides, I add anymore garlic and it'll drive away a vampire," She replied, shaking her head as she stirred the sauce.

"Spicy is good," Said Pete. "It's how I make my chili. Think you'd like it?"

"That depends, I never tried your chili, stop that," Myka chuckled as Pete kissed the back of her neck. She had pulled her long, curly hair back into a high ponytail, leaving her neck exposed.

Pete rested his hand on Myka's hips, his thumbs caressing the small of her back. He softly nuzzled her hair.

"Do you want me to burn the sauce?" She replied, her tone dead serious.

Pete only chuckled in reply, placing a soft kiss on her cheek. "You're doing fine, though I think that sauce still needs a little more garlic…" He whispered softly as he reached for a couple cloves of garlic, which he dropped in the mixture. Near immediately his partner voiced her disapproval and she turned around, placing her hands on her hips. "PETE!"

Kissing her cheek, Pete took the spoon from Myka, and stirred the sauce. "Trust me; I know what I'm doing, here…" He scooped out a little sauce on the spoon, before he held it to her lips, "Taste it."

Sighing in exasperation, Myka tasted the sauce, it was surprisingly good, and if she dared say it, tasted better now. "I'll be damned. It's still good." She replied.

"Now, no more doubting my mad culinary skills," Said Pete with a wink. "That's why we are the way we are, Myka. We compliment each other. Like the garlic and this sauce."

Pete tasted the sauce and stirred it a little more. He was cooking in Paris and enjoying himself. The dish was a little more complex than his usual style but he was having fun. This was more exciting to cook than a can of ravioli or baked beans and franks. More fun than grilling a steak too. Not because of the room or the city, but because he was doing this with Myka. They had never cooked together before.

It was not something that came up often when they were back home. Leena and Artie did most of the cooking and baking. He and Myka just showed up at the table. Maybe they would have to turn the tables on that one day. Maybe, if it was not just the city working its own magic.

Pete stirred the sauce a little more and looked in on the bread he and Myka had set up.

While Pete worked at the stove, Myka gathered some plates. She smiled as she watched Pete work; he seemed to have a knack for this sort of thing. Idly she wondered if he had to take on cooking duties amongst other duties with the loss of his father, he never really mentioned his mother, with his sister being deaf she imagined she already had her hands full supporting them both.

"Pete, the water's boiling," Stated Myka, indicating the pot of water they had set aside for the noodles. "Oh, right. On it." Opening a bag of angel hair pasta, Pete dumped the contents into the boiling water, and quickly turned the heat on the sauce to low, any longer on a high setting it'd be burnt. "I think the sauce is close to done." He remarked as he wiped his hands off on a dish towel.

"Shouldn't take too long, better get the bread out now," Myka replied grabbing an empty bread basket while Pete took the bread slices out of the oven. Pete placed the bread slices inside the bread basket, which he lined with a dish towel, then using the same cloth to cover up the bread. The towel would keep the bread warm until they were ready for them. Pete smiled at Myka as he set the cookie sheet atop the stove. "That was an experience," Myka remarked as she wiped off her hands.

"Did it all without burning down the kitchen too," Pete commented, Myka swatted his arm, laughing. "You know, I could get used to this." She remarked wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Me too," Said Pete, putting his arms around her torso.

The two of them shared a kiss and then a glass of sparkling cider each. They were tired from the day but energized by the night. By the city, the cooking and each other. They worked on Pete's French for a little while as they dabbled about in the kitchen. They got a number of laughs out of it as they waited on the noodles to finish cooking.

The pair indulged in their meal later, which to their surprise turned out to be quite good, not to mention filling. Pete had made up his mind by the meal's end that when they returned home, they would take over kitchen duties for a couple of nights, Leena permitting. Deciding to save what they did not eat for later, the pair cleaned up the table, depositing their dirty dishes in the dishwasher.

"That was really good, Myka," Said Pete. "Hey, any word from Artie?"

"No word back yet from home base, you think we should go crawl into bed and call it a night?"

"Our day trip got you all energized, eh?" Said Pete with a wink.

"You're insatiable, I meant sleep," Myka swatted his arm, playfully in reply.

"Mm-hm," Said Pete and he pulled her gently into his embrace, dancing with her slowly in the kitchen.

Pete used the small remote he found for the stereo and turned it on to something suitable. The two were quiet for a time, dancing slowly to the tune and letting the ambience flow over them. For all of Pete's joking around, this is when he felt closest to Myka. Moments like this, ones that he would trade for nothing. Things were so peaceful.

Myka sighed, letting her head rest against Pete's shoulder, her arms draped loosely around his neck. She smiled as Pete began to hum softly to the music. She wouldn't trade this for anything else in the world. She felt so…happy. Turning her head slightly, Myka pressed a soft kiss to his cheek before she laid her head back down upon his shoulder with a contented sigh.

The couple nearly leapt out of their skin as the Farnsworth went off. Unfortunately its current placement on the glass dining room table made it sound as though a large swarm of bees had invaded the room. Marching over to the table, Pete retrieved the device and flipped it open. Claudia greeted him on the other end, "Hey, viva la France! How's the trip?"

"Oh, you know," Started Pete. "It's alright."

"Dude, you're renting out a suite, like you didn't plan that," Argued Claudia, "Seriously, Paris, c'mon!"

"Actually we didn't," Said Pete. "Convention in town."

"I had to practically duck and run for cover when Artie found out, the only words I made out clearly was 'rargh rargh a suite?' followed by a random string of obscenities and more yarging."

"Sounds like you when you're suffering from Red Bull withdrawals," Said Pete, laughing.

"Funny, Pete!" Said Claudia. "Wait 'til you get back!"

"So Claw, were you able to clear up the footage I sent you of our mystery man?" Asked Pete, Claudia nodded eagerly, "Did I? I could get you the third shooter involved in the assassination of JFK!"

"They said that was proven false?"

"Find me a working Delorean and I'll prove otherwise," She stated pointing two fingers in a V shape at the screen. "But good news is, I did manage to clean up the files you sent me. I'll send 'em to Myka's laptop." Claudia replied as she typed away at her keyboard on the other end.

"Cool."

"Sent! Just be advised, the images are not still crystal clear, but compared to what you sent me originally, it's a lot better than it was before. Hopefully it'll give you a starting point either way."

"All right, thanks Claudia," Said Pete.

"No problem man, Uhura out!"

"Wait, so she's Uhura?" Said Pete. "That means that Artie is definitely Bones!"

Myka broke into laughter as Pete did an impression.

"Damn it Pete, I'm an archivist not a bricklayer!"

Pete and Myka continued to chuckle as they waited for the files to download to the laptop. The instant they were available, Myka loaded them up to play.

They could tell from the start that they were better than what Pete had shot earlier that night. Claudia had a marvelous talent for taking almost nothing data wise and making it into something useful. They watched the video of the dust cloud for a few moments and then a shape began to emerge. Pete darted his hand to the keyboard and paused the video on a relatively clearish shot of the culprit.

"Whoa," Said Pete and Myka quietly.

They were looking at the first halfway decent piece of evidence of the artifact they had seen yet. It was still fuzzy, but it was better than most of the pictures of Bigfoot. Pete copied the image to an image program and worked on it a tad to try and clear away more of the fuzziness before printing out a few copies.

He and Myka looked over the pictures and added them to the file they already had, also sending one to Artie as a backup.

"So what now?" Asked Myka.

"Well, T'Pol," Started Pete. "I say we get some rest tonight. Tomorrow morning we meet at a nice little café for coffee and pastries and a phone directory."

"What?" Said Myka. "Why?"

"I think we were heading in the right direction, just the wrong path."

"What do you mean?"

"The museum was a good idea, but, we need to go a step further." Said Pete. "Tomorrow we go small. We look up a historian who specializes in the subject. See if we can get some of the gory details that maybe France does not want to share about its dirty past, non?"

"Oui..." Said Myka, nodding as a smile came to her face. "Every so often you have a great idea, Pete."

"Just don't go to the well too often," Pete joked back, smiling at her tease.

Turning off the stereo via the remote, Pete stood up and stretched. It was definitely time for bed. He was feeling the mileage today.

"Come on beautiful," Said Pete, offering his hand. "Come fall asleep in my arms."

Myka smiled taking his hand. Pete smiled back, kissing her hand before they walked together in the direction of the bedroom. Both changed for bed silently. Pete donned a pair of black sweats, leaving his shirt off, while Myka changed into a pair of light blue drawstring scrubs, and a white short sleeved top. Pete tossed aside the throw pillows on the bed, before he then pulled back the coverlet, and he stepped aside, "Milady." He spoke softly as he turned to Myka with a flourish.

She shook her head and smiled, crawling into bed before Pete joined her. Pete pulled the coverlet over them both, and killed the lights, the moonlight basking them in a soft glow. Myka sighed as she rested her head on Pete's chest, and he softly traced his fingers through her hair, admiring the way the light of the moon reflected off her hair. Snuggling deeper into his arms, Myka pressed a soft kiss to his chin. "Goodnight Pete." She whispered.

"Les rêves doux, mon amour."


	6. Chapter 6

Pete awoke early the next morning, his digital watch's alarm clock rousing him from his sleep. Clicking the device off, Pete placed the watch back on the nightstand. Settling back into bed, Pete nuzzled Myka's hair softly, before he placed a soft kiss to the back of her ear, and he whispered softly, "Rise and shine sleeping beauty."

Myka snuggled deeper into Pete's arms, her legs tangling with his. "Five more minutes," She mumbled, before she wrapped her arms over his, not quite ready to get out of bed just yet. Pete shook his head and smiled, his efficient by-the-book partner, a slow riser, who'd of thought? It was either that or he had become a bad influence on her.

"Come on, up and at 'em," Said Pete as he softly bit at her neck and gave her a kiss.

"I was going to get up, honest." Myka smiled up at Pete sheepishly as he broke off the kiss. She softly stroked his hair absentmindedly, as he gave her another kiss, "Still on South Dakota Time." She replied as she gave him a playful shove, and she sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"C'mon slow poke," Said Pete teasingly.

"Don't try my patience, it's early, and I haven't had any coffee yet."

"Can't have coffee if you don't make it," Said Pete. "Think we can find this guy quickly?"

"Finding someone shouldn't be a problem, it's all the matter of how we approach this, without you know, being laughed out of there. In short, maybe we should leave the photo, unless we really want to come across as bumbling tourists."

"Couple of idiots chasing fantasies, huh?"

"Exactly. For right now, let's just get dressed, and go grab some breakfast, see if someone at the café can direct us to a reliable source. Anybody can just look up someone in the French Yellow Pages." Replied Myka.

"Yeah, the last thing we need is to accidentally look up a supposedly renowned scholar, only to wind up later visiting a yokel who caters solely to the tourists." Remarked Pete, as he nodded in agreement.

"Then let's see to it that we don't." Stated Myka as she rose from bed, and marched off in the direction of the bathroom. The pair found themselves back on the streets of Paris in an hour, cleaned and dressed. Myka opted for white drawstring khakis, an orange tank-top, and a white blouse. Pete chose blue jeans, and a yellow t-shirt, along with a black and gray windbreaker.

The pair found a quiet little café, and indulged in a breakfast of crepes and coffee. The meal passed by without incident, and the duo exchanged notes and ideas as they ate their breakfast. By the meal's end, they were able to find a little information about where they could seek out a historian who specialized in the country's history. It would take some traveling deeper into the city, but the owner claimed it would be worth the mileage. Pete and Myka certainly hoped so.

Another hour later and they found themselves off the beaten path so to speak, and already the duo was having second thoughts.

"Do you think this Professor La Vieux is legit, or just another catering yokel?" Asked Myka worriedly as she hung close to Pete, her eyes watching their surroundings warily. She wrapped an arm around his waist as he pulled her close, wrapping an arm around her shoulders protectively.

"Only one way to find out," Said Pete quietly, his gaze studying their environment. Once a Marine, always a Marine.

The area to which they had traveled was not one listed on the tour guides and maps of the city. It was an older section and considerably less reputable looking. Many of the buildings were weathered, missing paint and plaster. Signs were faded and the glass windows had a dusty look about them. The denizens of this area walked by, shooting sideways glances at the duo.

"Next time, let's not wear so bright of colors, eh?" Commented Pete as he studied the address he had written down in his notebook. "La Vieux, right?"

"Right."

"How is that spelled exactly?"

Myka sighed and shook her head. "L-A space V-I-E-U-X."

"That is so weird," Commented Pete, an eyebrow raised. "Anyway, this is the place."

Pete stopped in front of a small shop. The door was solid wood and faded with time, the glass clean and the shelves that they could see were orderly. Pete opened the door and gestured for Myka to enter, he coming in after.

The shop had the feel of age and time with it, as well as the smell of books. Old books. Ambient without being overpowering or repugnant. It reminded Pete of when he was a kid in his school's library.

Nobody was immediately visible and the duo walked around the store for a few moments. Finding no one, they looked at each other and shrugged.

"Bon jour," Said Pete out loud.

The empty stillness of the store was his only greeting, and reacting automatically, Pete slipped into investigator mode, sighing as he cast a glance around the store. Pete paused as he stopped near a desk and picked up a business card which he read aloud. "Abella La Vieux, Educated Scholar of The French Revolution." He frowned as he re-read the name. "Abella?"

"French as they come." Commented Myka as she walked along a row of shelves, her finger drifted along the spines as she studied the titles intently. "The direct translation is breath."

"So wait, does that mean her nickname is Abe?" He stated as he pocketed the card, chortling as he did. Myka rolled her eyes as she pulled out one of the books, and she began to flip through the pages. "It could be Bella." Myka commented with a shake of her head.

"Not nearly as funny," Said Pete. "Whoa, there she is."

Pete spied a woman coming out from the back of the store with an armload of books. Seeing the visitors, the woman set the books down on the counter and brushed herself off before coming to meet them.

"Bon jour," She said as she put out her hand. "Welcome to my shop."

Pete smiled at the woman as he shook her hand, "Nice to meet you Abe…lla." He all but ground out the last syllable of the woman's name as Myka none too subtlety elbowed him in the ribs. Abella smiled at Pete as she shook Myka's hand next. "Abella La Vieux, pleased to make you acquaintance, and your names are?"

"I'm Myka, and this is Pete." Abella smiled at the pair, "And what brings you both to my shop, you're not tourists are you?" She asked frowning. "I can't tell you how many people come through here, chasing fantasies and ghost stories…" Abella stated with a shake of her head.

"Nope" Said Pete with a smile. "No unicorns or ghosts."

Pete looked at Myka who looked at him in return. They had thought that this might happen.

"Would you like some tea while we talk?" Asked Abella. "I always find that things are more pleasant over tea."

"Sure," Said Pete.

Pete, for one, was grateful for the Twix moment that her suggestion offered. He and Myka had to rally and think of a way to bring up the subject of the iron mask without framing it in a touristy way.

"Follow me then," Said Abella as she led them into the back of the store.

The two agents followed her and soon found themselves not in a dusty storage area but in a nice apartment-like section. It had a kitchen, sitting area and a room off the kitchen was Pete assumed was a bedroom.

"Very nice place." Pete said as he looked around. "Cozy."

"Merci." Abella replied. "Please sit. I will put on the water for the tea. Do you have a preference? I have a variety."

"Um, Earl Grey?" Said Pete. "If it's not too much trouble."

"Of course," Replied Abella. "Myka?"

"Earl Grey is fine." Replied Myka.

Abella smiled at the pair and she wandered off in the direction of the kitchen to prepare a kettle of water for tea. Pete and Myka took seats on the small couch in the room, and exchanged glances. "So," Myka started slowly, "I think it's a safe bet we should probably skip the questions." She spoke softly.

Pete wasn't listening; he had gotten up and walked off to a far corner of the room as though deep in thought. Standing, Myka followed after him, "Pete what's wrong?" Her partner remained silent and he pointed to a framed object on a table, set up on display.

"It looks like the key..." Pete whispered. Myka looked in the direction in her partner had pointed, and her eye settled upon the object that had grasped his attention. Her brow scrunched up as they moved in for a closer look.

"No way, you don't think…?" Started Myka, echoing Pete's thought, the pair immediately looked up as they heard Abella reenter the room. "Do you prefer milk in your…" She paused as she spied the pair standing hunched together, closely scrutinizing an elaborate key.

"I think that it is..." Commented Pete as he pulled out a pair of purple gloves.

Her frown only deepened as she noticed the purple gloves the one agent pulled out. "I can assure you that I got that key legally, I have the legal documents to prove it." Replied Abella, "Are you trying to tell me it's stolen property?"

"Not exactly..." Said Pete as he extracted the item from the frame.

After carefully sliding the mount out of the frame, Pete removed the item. Upon taking the key into his hands he instantly frowned.

"What?" Asked Myka. "What is it?"

"It's only...half?" Remarked Pete as he turned it over in his hand for Myka to examine. "Still, I smell fudge."

"I am not making any..." Said Abella, confused and more than slightly annoyed.

"This, this is not good," Remarked Myka as she inspected the half key, "This must be a bifurcated artifact," She grimaced as she locked gazes with her partner, "Like Poe's Pen."

"Crap..."

"What is going on here?" Abella shouted. "Who are you people?"

"Where's the other half of this key?" Asked Myka as she turned around to face the woman.

"I don't know what you are talking about."

"Ma'am you're not helping, now answer the question! Clearly there's supposed to be two pieces, and one of them is missing, now where is it?" Repeated Myka, she was afraid of this, unfortunately there was no other way to work around it.

"I do not have the slightest idea!" Said Abella.

"You have half a key," Said Myka, getting angry. "Where is the other half?"

"Ladies, ladies!" Said Pete, putting a hand on Myka's shoulder. "Look, Abella, thank you for inviting us in and agreeing to talk with us."

Myka shook off Pete's hand and scowled at him. Pete gave Myka a look and shook his head at her.

"She invited us in," Said Pete. "We have not been forthcoming in our reason either."

"How do you mean?" Asked Abella.

"We are here to ask what you know about the iron mask," Said Pete. "This...half key looks very much like the key used to lock the mask onto the prisoner."

"It doesn't look very much like the key; it looks _exactly_ like Voltaire's Key." Remarked Myka as she pointed at it for added emphasis. "And I'm very curious to know just how it came into your possession, or in this case how apparently only half of the key came into your possession."

Abella sighed and sat down, gesturing for the two agents to do likewise. Holding a hand to her forehead, Abella began to speak again. "About two weeks ago, two other people came here looking for information on the mask also, a man and a woman, one of them brought that half key you're holding."

"A man and a woman?" Asked Pete. "What did they want?"

"They were looking for the other half of the key; they thought they could get information from me, that I would be able to decipher its location. I told them both it was a miracle that the key or rather half of it had even been found, let alone as intact as that piece is there that you're holding."

"Did they say where they got it?"

Abella shrugged, shaking her head. "They wouldn't tell me where they found it, only that they wanted me to study it. They told me that they'd send someone to come back to reclaim the key later, after I had done my…research…"

Pete and Myka exchanged glances at Abella's words. Clearly they were in for a lot more trouble than they bargained for on this little visit, half of an artifact, and now the one holding it was apparently being threatened. This did not bode well, for either party.

Pete sat back in his chair and looked at the half-artifact. They could not leave it here in Abella's possession. The two people who had dropped it off would be back to take it. That could not happen. Pete could see that he and Myka were already behind in the game. They could not afford to lose any ground.

"We need to secure this artifact," Said Pete. "Whoever is wearing the mask is dangerous enough. We cannot allow this piece to be taken."

"Someone's wearing the iron mask?" Started Abella confusedly, "You can't be serious _the_ iron mask?" She asked again, her expression perplexed.

"We are."

"Pete bag it." Myka stated extracting a foil-Mylar bag which she pulled open. Abella only watched the pair in confusion as Pete tossed the half key inside the bag, and a faint spark of electricity emanated from within, then went out with a puff. The two agents exchanged confused glances as they peered inside the bag.

"That should have been...better…" Commented Pete slowly as his partner sealed up the bag. "…maybe because it was only half?" Myka shrugged her shoulders, pressing her lips together tightly.

"We should probably ask Artie about it, but what about Abella? Is she going to be safe here by herself?" Myka asked as she looked back at the woman. "If they come back, and find out she doesn't have the half key…" Started Myka worriedly, afraid of what might happen if they left the woman alone.

"I am not leaving my home." Said Abella.

"Miss La Vieux…" Pete gently grasped hold of his partner's elbow, and he shook his head, he had anticipated this sort of reply from the other woman. Extracting a pen from his pocket, Pete scribbled down his cell number on the back of a business card before he handed it to Abella.

"If you find out anything else that can help us at all, please, don't hesitate to call us." Pete spoke quietly as he pressed the card into her hand.

Abella looked at the card and then put it into a pocket. "Merci."

"Do you have anything, anything at all on the pair that gave you the key, names, descriptions…?" Questioned Myka.

Abella nodded. "I'll need to check my files, I have their names on file, it was for the transaction, hang on, I'll go get them."

The pair watched as Abella exited the room and proceeded to head back to her office, Pete shook his head, and Myka frowned at him, "You're not thinking we're going to get much with this are you?" She whispered.

"I don't know..." Pete said slowly. "…either way it's a lead."

Abella reappeared moments later, a set of manila file folders in her hands. "Here are the files."

"Thanks, we'll be in touch." Replied Myka as Abella handed her the files, "Are you sure you'll be alright by yourself?" She asked again as she looked up from the files.

Abella nodded. "I have a place I can go to, a friend's. If I find anything more on that other half key I'll tell you. You really think someone is wearing the iron mask?"

"Possibly." Said Pete. "We'll be in touch. Keep your door closed and lock up anything precious if you leave."

With that the pair exited the store, and proceeded to head back to the hotel. Hopefully Artie would be able to provide them with more information and hopefully so would Abella.


	7. Chapter 7

"Myka, take some snaps of the files," Started Pete. "Email them to Claudia. I'm calling Artie."

Taking the Farnsworth from his pocket, Pete opened it up and called Artie as they walked away from the shop. The screen on the Farnsworth was black for a few moments and then Artie's face blipped onto the screen. His expression showed that he was in his usual gruff mood.

"Agents," He said. "What do you have?"

"We found a shop run by a person named Abella La Vieux, a local historian," started Pete. "While talking to her we thought we had found Voltaire's Key..."

"What?" Said Artie. "_The_ key?"

"Yeah, but listen," Pete started again. "What we found is legit, but it's only half of the key. When we tried to bag it, it sparked a little and then some smoke came out."

"Yes," Said Artie. "It was an incomplete artifact so it did not have the full effect. You must find the other half, agents. I will see what I can find out from my end."

"Right," Said Pete. "Now Abella said the...half key was on loan to her by a man and a woman. They wanted her to research it. She had some files on the half key and some description on the man and woman. Myka is preparing to email the files as we speak."

"Good," Artie replied. "That will give Claudia something to do other than attempting to futz with the Tesla specifications. Good hunting agents. Be safe."

Pete's Farnsworth screen went blank again as Artie signed off and Pete replaced it in his pocket. Myka was still taking pictures with her camera phone. Pete helped by turning the pages when she was ready. Afterwards he waited while she sent the files off to Claudia.

"This new twist is really bad for us," Said Pete. "Still it let us know that we have active competition. Come on; let's go back to the hotel."

Tucking the file under one arm, Myka moved closer to Pete as they walked, his arm came to automatically rest over her shoulders. Evening would be setting in soon, better to get out of this area of town before nightfall set in.

Even with the wariness they had to have for this area, Pete still took a moment to think on the fact that he was walking with his arm around Myka in Paris. That was not something he would ever have seen.

Thankfully the two made their return to the main streets without incident, though if anyone did attempt to give them trouble, even without the aid of the Tesla, they'd find them both to be a handful. Pete had learned for himself firsthand that Myka threw a mean right hook. If she ever talked him into a sparring session he imagined he'd be one the stumbling away. Either way it didn't stop him from doing anything or everything to keep her safe.

Piling into a taxi, the two breathed a sigh of relief, grateful to leave behind the seedier side of Paris for now. The ride back was slow and uneventful to the hotel, and unfortunately they had no way of knowing when or where the man in iron mask would strike again.

Frowning, Myka turned the bag over in her hands, studying the half key curiously. "I don't get it, if someone is using that mask against another's will, wouldn't it make sense for them to possess the whole key?"

"Unless it was voluntary?"

"But the wearer would still need the key to lock the mask into place, and even still what reason would they have for ditching the key?" Countered Myka.

"What if it doesn't need the key to lock it?" Asked Pete. "You don't need a key to lock a padlock."

"You think the mask automatically locks itself into place when it's on the wearer, without the key? Like the…the…" Images of the Saracen Spine flashed through her mind, and a shiver ran down her back at the memory. It wasn't until she felt Pete's hand on her shoulder that she snapped out of her reverie, and found him looking at her worriedly.

Wordlessly, Pete pulled Myka into his arms. That case alone had given them both nightmares, though she had taken to it worse, after he had learned from her firsthand on their case in Pittsburgh. Since that night he had often found her curling up at his side, her head on his shoulder. On the nights the nightmares were the worst he stayed with her, whispering soft words of reassurance until she fell back asleep. Now with the possibility of an evil mask on the loose that seemingly attached itself to the wearer he could sense her fears. The Spine drove people to immense fits of uncontrollable rage, making them fight until they literally burned out. What did the iron mask do?

Pete tenderly brushed back a long strand of hair from Myka's eyes. "I'm here for you, always, and we'll find this thing..." He whispered as he rested his forehead against hers. "…together." Myka finished before she leaned in to kiss him. A few minutes later, the taxi pulled up outside their hotel. Pete paid the driver before he exited the cab, and offered his hand to Myka, and together the two made their way back to their room. Pete threw his windbreaker over the back of a chair before he followed Myka into the kitchen.

"I wonder…are they just looking for the mask itself, or the other half of the key?" Wondered Myka aloud as she fished out the remnants of their meal from last night, and Pete gathered some plates and silverware.

"Got me."

"Well think about it, if you lose one half of that key, the mask isn't coming off. Maybe the key cancels out the effects of the artifact?"

"Maybe the key is what can take it off and keep it off once the mask is taken away, perhaps one half locks into place, the other unlocks it?" Pete mused.

Myka held up the bag and looked at the half key curiously. "I don't know. It's possible, but it'd have be made of a very strong, very durable metal. I'd imagine if someone tried to use one half alone on the mask, they'd risk breaking the key in half."

"Which is why those other two people looked up Abella," Said Pete. "She seems to be the best authority on the subject. Or at least the time period. Or...the only one that will discuss it."

"For now let's just eat, and then we'll check back with Claudia to inquire about Abella's clients." Replied Myka as she set down the half key. Turning away she doled out portions of their meal from night before onto two separate plates. Grabbing a couple glasses, Pete wandered into the dining area, taking a bottle of sparkling cider with him. Pete filled both glasses before he grabbed the TV remote and he switched it to the news and sat down on the couch. Not surprisingly the top story was of the attack on The Louvre the night before.

Pete took a sip of his cider and prepared to settle back when the news anchor said something that stopped him.

"This attack on The Louvre preceded the attack on The La Reaux estate that happened just four hours ago..."

Pete sat bolt upright. "Myka!"

Myka poked her head out of the kitchen. "What is it Pete? I'm making our salads."

Pete wordlessly motioned for her to come over as he turned up the TV's volume via the remote. The news anchor continued as Myka sat down next to Pete, a towel in her hands.

"...will show the footage when it is available. To repeat, The La Reaux estate was ransacked in a violent manner. Many of the witnesses state that the attack was much like that of The Louvre robbery the previous evening. Authorities say...hold on...I have just been told that we have to footage from the estate's security cameras."

Clear, black and white footage began to show on the television. At first all was quiet and then a large cloud of dust exploded onto the screen. There was no audio so the two agents could not hear anything. The two sat and watched as a few moments later a large, dark figure emerged from the cloud of dust near the wall of the mansion. Another person followed, firing a gun. There seemed to be no discernable effect.

The footage abruptly ended and the news anchor came back on. Pete and Myka turned to look at each other. "Artie!"

Pete opened the Farnsworth and was about to call Artie when he heard a tinny buzz and Artie's face came onto the screen.

"Have you been watching the news?" Asked Artie. "I have Claudia working on the footage now."

"Yeah, we saw the news just now," Said Pete. "How did you...?"

"I have been monitoring the news reports for any more clues on The Louvre heist," Said Artie. "Anyway! Get out there tomorrow as quickly as you can and look around. If Claudia comes up with anything off the video feed I'll call you."

"Right," Said Pete before he closed the Farnsworth. "Damn it."

"I can't believe it, two attacks in one night?" Started Myka.

"These guys do act fast," Said Pete, shaking his head. "Alright well, let's eat."

Myka threw down the dish towel in exasperation as she rose up from the couch. "Great, just when we finally think we're getting somewhere, we learn there was another attack on the same night! Our luck they're out there at again right now!" She remarked, gesturing with her hands for emphasis as she spoke. "One step behind, and they're one step ahead." She remarked with a tired sigh.

"Hey, too late to worry about it now," Pete said with a shrug as he stood up next to her, throwing an arm around her shoulders as he did, pulling her close. "Tomorrow we cruise on out there and ferret us up some clues, kay?"

"I just wish we could do more is all," She replied quietly.

"C'mon, let's eat before dinner gets cold." Pete replied as he gave her a half hug in reassurance.

The two sat down, eating their meals in relative silence, their minds on the case and the recent attack. What motivation if any was there behind the attacks? Were they dealing with a group of art thieves that had haplessly stumbled upon an artifact that they were now using to their benefit, or we they simply looking for answers themselves?

Checking her email, Myka found no new messages waiting from Claudia and she replayed the footage Claudia had managed to clear up for them both earlier. Myka studied the footage closely; her eyes closely scrutinizing the scene being played out before her; there had to have been something she missed, but what, and where? Myka barely looked up as she felt Pete's hands rest on her shoulders.

"We should hit the hay, Myka."

"I'm just going over the footage again, trying to see if there was anything we might have missed."

"Think something is going to pop out at you?"

"I can't help but thinking the answer is here somewhere, but where and how…" She sighed tiredly, "…maybe it's the smoke?" Myka pinched the bridge of her nose, willing sleep from her eyes, she needed to focus, but even she was at a loss, what was it they were looking for?

Pete softly rubbed Myka's arms and then worked his way up to her shoulders and neck. Myka lowered her head for a moment and then snapped back up.

"I need to study this footage, Pete."

"No," Said Pete. "You don't. You need to sleep on it. Chasing after thoughts while you are tired isn't going to help you. Rest. Let your mind work it out."

Myka grumbled as she stared at her computer. She wanted to push the replay button again, but Pete's shoulder massage was putting her right in the mode to sleep. She was struggling so hard with this case. Maybe, maybe he was right. Maybe she was too close to it right now. Too tired. She just wanted to get that one break that they needed.

"Come on Myka," Coaxed Pete. "We'll go over the footage again at breakfast before we go out to the scene. Cool?"

Myka sighed tiredly and she closed up her laptop, before she stood up. "Deal."

"Alright, c'mon," Said Pete as he walked into the bedroom, Myka at his heels.

"Couple of hours of sleep and then we wake and have scrambled eggs and waffles with coffee, juice and toast." Pete pulled off his shirt, and stripped down to his boxers before he climbed into bed.

"We're only getting a couple hours of sleep?" Remarked Myka, one eyebrow raised as she changed for bed. "Planning to keep me up all night were you?" She smirked knowingly at her partner as she crawled under the covers.

"You know what I meant you sly fox." Pete chided placing a soft kiss to the back of her ear as he cradled her form next to his. Myka's eyes opened slightly at his remark and she turned to lock gazes with him, her eyes narrowing. "Fox?" Pete only smiled, kissing the tip of her nose in reply.

Smirking slightly, Myka kissed Pete softly before she relaxed into his embrace, and she sighed tiredly as he rested his chin against the crook of her neck. Before long they were both fast asleep, spooned in each other's arms.


	8. Chapter 8

The next morning, Pete awoke before Myka. Deciding to allow her a little more shuteye, Pete quietly slipped from her embrace, and he tiptoed to the bathroom for an early morning shower. Refreshed and cleaned, Pete threw on one of the bathrobes offered by the hotel and he sat down on the edge of the bed. He smiled as he lovingly brushed a strand of hair from Myka's eyes. She was more than just beautiful in his eyes, she had the brains to match, not to mention a courage like no other, she was truly something else this woman.

Adoringly, Pete traced his fingertips lightly down her face, and he traced a path down her shoulder to her arm. Myka stirred slightly as his fingertips brushed her hip gently, and she smiled in her sleep, his name a soft whisper on her lips. Pete smiled as she moved her foot away when his fingertips came to rest lightly against the infinity tattoo on her ankle. Tracing the design on her ankle absentmindedly, Pete smiled as Myka opened her eyes, and she smiled back at him sleepily. She giggled as he lightly traced his fingertips over the design, before she shifted her foot away, apparently she was ticklish.

"You're smiling." Said Pete with a wink.

"Tickles." She replied as she held a hand to her mouth, fighting back a yawn, "What time is it, did I oversleep?" Nervously Myka cast a glance to the digital clock on the nightstand before she breathed a sigh of relief. Still early.

"No." Pete replied. "I just woke up early. Got in a shower."

"You saved me some hot water I hope?" She asked as she climbed out of bed and wandered over to the dresser to pull out a change of clean clothes.

"I thought I better get at it early before you took it all, like last time."

"Not my fault you were too busy checking me out to call first dibs on the shower then." She replied in jest as she flashed him a wink before she disappeared into the bathroom.

"If it is cold, I can come in and warm you up." Called Pete teasingly.

Myka emerged from the shower a few minutes later, cleaned and dressed. She decided to opt for a simple pair of black jeans, and a dark green top. She found Pete in the kitchen standing by the stove, now dressed in shades of dark blue, and black. She smiled softly as she drew closer, watching him silently as he worked; his back was turned towards her, humming to himself as he cooked scrambled eggs. He looked up as he spied Myka approach him and he nodded at her laptop.

"There you are. Claudia just emailed us the footage from the attack last night, which has since been Claudified." He stated with a gesture of his hands.

Myka raised an eyebrow. "Claudified?"

"Translation: she cleaned it up, using her mad skills." Replied Pete as he dished out some scrambled eggs for them each onto separate plates.

"Did she turn up anything new?" Myka asked as she stepped into the kitchen to assist him.

Pete shook his head. "Didn't get a chance to look it over; been busy trying to surprise my foxy lady by cooking her breakfast." He winked at her as he leaned over to place a quick kiss on her cheek. Myka swatted his arm as she grabbed the toast while he attended to the waffles.

"Don't you dare call me that in public or I'll kick your ass." She warned as she wandered into the dining area, a glass of orange juice in hand. Pete trailed behind her carrying their breakfast.

"What about back at the Warehouse?" Pete asked her in jest as she took a sip of orange juice.

Myka all but spat out orange juice and she laughed nervously, her cheeks reddening as she set down her glass. "Are you kidding me? No way! I'd never hear the end of it from Claudia!" Pete grinned mischievously at his partner as he set down the plates on the table.

"What about after she's gone to bed?" Pete whispered softly into her ear as he snaked his arms around her waist, drawing her close.

Rolling her eyes Myka playfully pushed him away, drawing a chuckle from Pete. The two sat down to breakfast, and ate their meals in companionable silence. Finished with breakfast, the two pushed their plates aside and turned to the new footage that Claudia had emailed them earlier. As a reference point they also brought up the first attack, and played them side by side, comparing the two.

"This dude is serious."

Myka jotted down notes onto her notepad as she spoke, "I think it's safe to say we know two new pieces of information about our artifact, the first being that it grants the wearer invulnerability and the second…being…it apparently gives them super strength."

"I concur."

"What I'm wondering though is if there is any purpose behind these attacks; on one hand it seems like an organized hit, but on the other hand…"

"Well, there has to be some purpose," Said Pete. "So far they have hit two high profile targets with no regard for stealth."

"I'm really curious about that pair that came to see Abella; I think they know something we don't. More importantly though, where did they turn up that half key?" Remarked Myka as she took a swig of her coffee.

"We have to get eyes on them at some point." Said Pete. "I think staking out Abella's place might be a good idea at some point."

"Agreed, we should probably check out the scene first, though how are we going to get a good look over there? Chances are it's going to be taped off by local PD, plus I don't think they're going to let a couple of Secret Service agents go nosing about either. It'd be a different story if we were back home…"

"Well we could always do a distraction," Said Pete as his eyes swept over her form studiously. "Do you still have those sandals you wore the other day, the white pair?" He asked after several moments, an idea formulating in his mind.

"I'm lucky those damned shoes didn't give me blisters, oh no. Don't tell me you're thinking what I think you're thinking…" She stated eying him warily.

"What?"

"You want me to flirt our way past security." She replied, raising an eyebrow.

"I was going to say use your cunning feminine wiles, you know just a little something to distract the security, meanwhile I scope out the scene." Pete remarked with a gesture of his hands.

Myka sighed before she replied. "Remember this is your idea, not mine, try to be a little less obvious than last time."

"It wasn't that bad..."

Myka flashed Pete a look as she wandered back into the bedroom to change. Said last time resulted in a guard all but being catapulted into a priceless vase, after Pete deemed he was getting fresh with his partner. Myka had never seen him so upset or Artie later for that matter when they had to explain a near $12,000 fine for a vase from the Ming Dynasty being shattered. Ironically said vase housed the artifact in question they had been searching for.

A scant few minutes later, Myka emerged from the bedroom, wearing a knee length emerald green sundress, a matching wrap, and a pair of white strappy sandals. Her long curly hair had been left down, flowing past her shoulders in soft waves. Pete whistled his appreciation, and Myka lightly patted his cheek. "Remember I'm only doing this to create a diversion."

"It's working." Pete grinned.

"I'm trying to distract the guards, _not_ you," She replied as she held his jaw firmly in her hand before she gave him a tender kiss. "Try to stay focused."

"Not on you though, right?" Replied Pete conspiratorially as he flashed her a sly wink. Shaking her head, Myka exited the hotel room, Pete following after her. The pair made their way back downstairs to the lobby, and onto the city streets.

Piling into a taxi, the two began the long ride to The La Reaux. Near immediately upon their arrival as was to be expected the area where the attack had occurred had been taped off, and at current they spied two guards at duty, one of which sat watching the opposite end of the hall, bent over in his chair dozing, meanwhile the closest guard stood nearby, standing watch over the taped off area.

Pete and Myka observed the guards for several moments before they nodded to each other, "Looks like we just have to worry about the one guard, that other guy is out cold." Whispered Myka.

"Good," Nodded Pete. "You going to be okay?"

"I'll be alright, you just go see if you can squirrel up some information." Myka fiddled with her hair, and glanced over her makeup in her compact. "God, I can't believe this, playing a bumbling tourist and a floozy."

"You don't look like a floozy." Said Pete before he snuck off.

Pocketing her compact, Myka smiled at Pete before she walked off in the direction of the guard standing watch over the taped off area. Pete wasn't sure if he wanted to smile or grimace when he heard her fall back on broken French as she proceeded to distract the guard. One way or the other he had a feeling neither of them was overly thrilled with the whole idea either way, him especially. As the pair wandered further down the hall, Pete watched them closely for several seconds, his eyes not once leaving Myka. Once he deemed the area to be clear, Pete snuck off into the taped off area and quickly set to work.

Pete made his way over to where the Iron Mask had broken his or her way out of the estate. As expected there was quite a bit of rubble. Pete began to take pictures using a digital camera. He made sure to catch any footprints in the earth near the new 'exit' in the wall. The ground was fairly trampled, but maybe Claudia could use her computer kung fu to work something out.

Taking another brief glance around, Pete slipped into the building, ducking through the tape. He was able to follow a trail of faint foot-shaped indentations along the floor. A new fact about this artifact was that it also made the wearer rather heavy. He wrote that down in his notebook and then took a snapshot of a set of the prints in the floor.

He followed the trail back inside the mansion to the origin. It looked to be some kind of painting perhaps. The footprints led to a giant empty space on a wall. The video, even Claudified had not been that distinct in detail. He made a note to find out what was missing from the estate. Claudia or Artie could find it by sneaking around the computer's system of the local police. Pete took a picture of the wall and then turned around to exit. As he did so, he heard faint voices.

"Crap..."

Moving quickly and quietly, Pete ducked behind some large potted plants. Just as he had concealed himself he saw two individuals pass by him, a man and a woman. The woman was decidedly of Asian descent. Her long straight hair was nearly as black as coal, pulled behind her head in a tight, low ponytail, framing a pair of sharp brown eyes. The man had short messy, light brown hair; his eyes were pale jade, reminiscent of the surface of a frozen pond. Both were dressed in pant suits; the man was dressed in nearly all black, where his partner was dressed in all white. At a passing glance, either could have been mistaken for art critics.

As Pete watched the pair, he noted they were speaking in a foreign language, and whatever it was, it was definitely not French. It sounded Asian in origin, perhaps Taiwanese, or Mandarin, but Pete was not sure. By their body language, it did not appear as if they belonged there either.

The two stopped at the wall and the man continued to speak in hushed, but angry tones. He kept pointing at the wall as he spoke. The woman spoke back to him, just as angrily. She also pointed at the wall. Pete's eyebrow rose as he readied his camera. He took several snapshots of the two as they talked. He thought he got some usable shots. He would have Artie run these two and see what turned up. Maybe he came across their mysterious counterparts.

Pete ducked down low as he heard someone yelling in French, near immediately leading him to suspect he had been spotted, he fast discovered that it was the couple being yelled at, not him. The pair exchanged glances, speaking hurriedly to each other, before they turned and began to walk down the hall, slowly at first.

Another guard rounded the corner, and blocked off the pair's path. He held up his hand as he approached them, indicating they should stop now. The woman proceeded to move past the guard, and he grabbed her arm, and he was fast met with a roundhouse to the ribs, and a sharp elbow blow to his back. The man turned towards the other guard who was now fast approaching and he delivered a palm strike to his face before he grabbed the guard's wrist and sent him careening into the wall, but not before the guard alerted security.

Pete stood up and moved from his hiding place, placing the camera inside his coat. He turned around the corner to begin following the mysterious pair. As he turned the corner, however, he saw that they had not yet moved on. Pete also saw that he had been spotted.

The woman smiled wickedly at Pete as she glanced in his direction and he cursed as she spied an egg-shaped device in her hand, a grenade.

"Oh shi-"

He expected an explosion, smoke, or a flash of light even when the grenade hit the ground. Instead, he was greeted by a high-pitched screech, the air ripped apart before him, the sheer force of the sound wave rattled the paintings on the wall, and the windows in the surrounding area were shattered to pieces as he was sent flying backwards, his back slamming into the wall behind him. Pete looked up just in time to spy the couple moving hurriedly down the hall, and he heard hurried, urgent French being yelled from further down the hall.


	9. Chapter 9

Pete struggled to his feet. His ears were ringing and he felt a little vertigo. Seeing as how he could barely walk, Pete figured it was best to try and simply disappear before the rest of the guards came rather than chase the dynamic doppelgangers. Besides, he had pictures of them. Artie would dig something up.

Making his way down the hall, using pillars and plants as cover, Pete made his way back to the gaping hole in the wall and exited the building. With security moving into the building, Pete was able to move out of the yard unseen and back into the street. There he found Myka standing by herself, a look of confusion and concern on her face.

Pete walked slowly out of the yard and looked around before signaling to Myka with a wave. When she came over to him, he saw her lips moving but could only hear murmuring, like he was underwater. She gave him her angry look and Pete waved her off.

"I can't hear," He started. "She used something on me."

Myka put one hand to his mouth and a finger to her lips, apparently he was too loud. Taking his arm, they walked quietly away from the scene.

"I heard an explosion, what happened back there?" She asked as she cast a glance in his direction, Pete's face only scrunched up in confusion, she sighed, remembering what he had just told her. An idea suddenly came to her, and she gestured to her lips, recalling the fact that he knew how to read lips. Gesturing with her hands that he not speak as loudly to her this time, Myka rephrased her question and spoke slowly to him. Pete could sense that she was making an attempt at communication, but his head was splitting, making concentration difficult.

Myka sighed in exasperation, this was getting them nowhere, she rushed under his arm as she spied him stumble. From off in the distance she could hear sirens wailing, which to Pete's ears sounded like a distant echo. She nodded at her partner and the two ambled away further down the street, moving away from the scene as far as possible. The pair neared a small park, and inside Myka could spy several vacant stone benches. Walking towards the nearest bench, Myka sat down, Pete all but collapsed against her with a pained groan.

"Pete, Pete look at me," She stated softly as she tipped up his chin and she gestured to her mouth as she spoke, "I'll call Artie, so you just take a minute okay?"

Pete nodded, closing his eyes and leaning back against the bench.

Myka softly stroked his cheek, her thumb gently tracing the skin. Sighing tiredly, she pulled out the Farnsworth. "Artie it's me, we were just at The La Reaux, there was another attack,"

"Our masked friend?" Asked Artie.

"Not the Iron Mask; it was like a bomb went off, only there was no explosion,"

"You're not saying it was an implosion grenade? I know for a fact we recovered both the grenades, and the blueprints, there's no way anymore of those things could be floating around," Artie rambled on, "Great, if those things are out and about again…"

"No, no it was definitely not an implosion grenade; it was more like the roar of a jet engine, a sonic boom." Her reply prompted a near immediate response from her boss; his eyes went wide at this new information.

"A sonic boom, you're certain of this?" He questioned, and Myka nodded.

"From the sound alone, half the building likely heard it. Artie what would cause something like that?" She questioned worriedly as she cast a glance in her partner's direction briefly. Pete looked up at her, his hearing had very slowly begun to return, but his head felt like he had tiny gnomes with hammers running around inside running amok.

"It sounds like it's a sound grenade." Started Artie, he paused before proceeding to delve into further detail, or in his case, the complete history of the object in question. "In, in essence, think of a high-powered flash grenade. They were originally conceived by Leonardo Da Vinci in the 1500s, but the first working prototypes were built in 1951 only to be put out of commission later in 1953. Too many mishandles by fellow agents, many of whom wound up getting knocked out themselves, and the collateral damage, ho ho, don't even get me…"

"Artie," Started Myka.

Artie paused. "Was I rambling? I'm sorry, I was, oh never mind. Pete what did you learn back there, tell me you have something."

"I...took some pictures," Said Pete slowly. "Of our Mirror-Verse twins."

"Send the pictures to Claudia; I'll see if we can put some names to their faces. If those two are running around with sound grenades, it's imperative we stop them."

"All over it, boss."

"I strongly suggest that you stake out that woman, Abella's residence. If these two used a sound grenade, I wouldn't past either of them to go back and try breaking into her shop to recover the half key."

"We thought it was a good idea too." Said Pete. "We'll start tonight."

"Excellent." Said Artie. "Good luck agents. Keep me posted."

Myka closed the Farnsworth and looked over at Pete. The color had returned to his face and he appeared more alert now.

"How are you feeling?" Myka asked as she gently grasped hold of his hand.

"I still have a Mack truck rolling over my brain, but at least I can hear again."

"Good." Myka replied. "Let's go back to the hotel. We'll send off these pictures you took, get you some aspirin and some food. Maybe a little rest before we go and keep watch at Abella's."

"Sounds like a plan to me."

The pair rose up from the bench, and made their exit from the park, and walked off towards the streets to hail a cab. Once they had secured a ride, both climbed into the backseat. Pete closed his eyes, as he pinched the bridge of his nose, suddenly feeling nauseous. Automatically, Myka rested her hand on the back of his neck, a worried expression crossing her features. "What's wrong?"

"Everything's spinning." He grumbled in reply as his brow scrunched up in pain.

"Rest your head on my shoulder, we'll be back soon." Myka whispered softly as she pressed a gentle kiss to his temple. Pete nodded weakly, and laid his head against his partner's shoulder. Myka gently stroked his back as he closed his eyes; her free hand gently grasped his as she watched him fall into a light doze.

Several minutes later the pair arrived back at their hotel, and made their way back up to their room. Myka helped Pete over to the couch; an arm around his waist, the sound grenade not only sent his hearing out of whack, but his equilibrium as well. "Here, sit down, you gonna be alright?"

Pete sat down on the couch heavily. Sitting down felt good for a moment but then the room started to spin. He sat quietly. At least he was starting to feel better.

"Just lie down, I'll get you some aspirin." Myka stood up slowly, reaching for a pillow as she did.

"Here, rest." She stated softly as she placed the pillow under his head, Myka tenderly stroked Pete's hair as she knelt at the side of the couch. "I'll be right back." She whispered softly as she kissed his forehead before she rose up to step away.

"Right on." Pete lay on his side quietly. A few moments later Myka reappeared.

"Here, I hope this helps." She stated holding out the aspirin, and the glass of water to him.

Pete sat up slowly, taking the offered aspirin and the glass of water. "You're an angel, thank you." He spoke softly and downed the aspirin before he handed the glass of water back to Myka.

Myka blushed at the compliment and smiled. "You don't have to thank me for anything. I'd do anything for you because I love you."

"Wow, I love you too...Myka." Said Pete as he reached out and cupped her face in his left hand. He tried to smile, but he still couldn't feel his face. "What's for dinner?"

"Pete," She chuckled as she tenderly kissed his palm. "Anything in particular you have a taste for, I can order room service, I mean if you'd rather I stay here with you I could…"

"I trus...t your judgment." Pete said.

"I think I can manage, you just rest up." She stated as she leaned in to give him a tender kiss. Myka softly stroked his hair, before she rose to her feet and disappeared into the kitchen, leaving Pete to rest. Myka watched Pete closely for several moments from afar before she set to work on preparing something for them both to eat.

Pete slowly felt his coming back into place and felt less like a man in a fish bowl. The room stopped spinning and his headache was now a slight dull ache. He sat up slowly and then stood up. He was able to keep his balance and walked over to where Myka was standing.

Myka glanced up from checking the bacon as she heard her partner approach, and she smiled at him sweetly. "Hey, you feeling better?"

"Yeah," Pete replied. "I smelled bacon strips cooking."

"They're for the BLTs,"

"Sounds good."

"I thought you'd want one, I mean I'm not crazy about them, since I think they're messy, but I know you love them and I…" She stated sheepishly, a blush crept on her face.

Pete traced his fingertips down Myka's neck, shoulders and arms before resting on her hips. He placed a soft kiss to the back of her neck before turning her around to face him. Putting his arms around her waist, Pete leaned in and kissed Myka on the lips. He felt her hair gently trace over his hands and the scent of Myka's skin. After a few moments he pulled back. "Thank you."

"Anytime," She smiled at him as she returned his kiss. "By the way I emailed Claudia the pictures you took. She hasn't gotten back to me yet, but she's going over the pictures now, and she said if Artie finds out any information on our mystery duo, he'll contact us ASAP."

"Hopefully not too ASAP." Said Pete as he traced down her jawline.

Myka nuzzled his nose and turned slightly to move the bacon off the stove. "Cut up the tomatoes for me?"

"Sure."

"You could probably work at that better if you moved..." Myka smiled.

Pete smiled as Myka gave him another kiss. Together they worked in the kitchen to whip up their BLTs. They sat quietly at the table and ate their food as they glanced over all the evidence they had collected so far. They had a lot of photos and videos and books on the myth of the artifact but not much aside from that.

As they rose to go and clean their dishes, the tinny buzzing of the Farnsworth attracted their attention. Pete walked back over to the table and opened it up. Artie's face came on the screen. He looked at Pete.

"You look terrible," Artie started. "Are you feeling all right?"

"Yeah," Said Pete. "Just a little blasted is all."

"Hmm, indeed," Nodded Artie. "Anyway, I have some information on those two people."

"What can you tell us about them Artie?" Asked Myka.

"They are contract...asset procurement specialists." Said Artie. "The man is Pierre Dumeaux and the woman is Nariko Lian. Aside from being excellent thieves they also have some skill set of renown in the killer-for-hire circles. Not a couple of playmates I would have chosen agents."

"Did not exactly have a choice, Artie." Said Pete. "What is their interest in this artifact?"

"Aside from the obvious potential for thieving and mayhem, I have no idea."

"Were you able to find any more information on the mask or the key?" Myka piped up.

"Research is ongoing, agents," Artie Said. "Patience is a virtue. Keep working from your end and by all means be careful! Contact you later."

Pete closed the Farnsworth, and the pair exchanged glances, needless to say this newfound information on their mystery duo was not exactly comforting.

"Great, we're not just dealing with your run-of-the-mill art thieves anymore, but also assassins, oh what joyous news this is." Remarked Myka cynically, Pete placed a hand on her shoulder.

"We've dealt and are dealing with worse," Said Pete. "MacPherson? H.G. Wells?"

"But they're _not_ trained assassins Pete!" She started pointedly. "Assassins aren't paid to miss their targets, and if they wanted to, they could make extremely short work of either you or me."

"Well we got us some guns too," Pete said in a voice mimicking John Wayne. "Teslas, but they'll do."

"Not to mention some high-tech toys of their own, for all we know they have Teslas of their own." She replied woefully.

"Why don't you check over all the evidence that Artie sent of our two new playmates," Pete said. "I'm going to go and buy a paper. I saw they had a local paper that was printed in English for tourists."

Myka took a deep breath and nodded. As Pete moved to rise from the couch she quickly grasped hold of his hands, and levelly held his gaze, "Listen to me Lattimer, don't you dare, and I mean don't even think of pulling any of your stupid self-sacrificing bullshit tonight or I will personally kick your ass, understand me?"

"I'm just going to get a newspaper."

"Pete, I mean it, I don't want anything to happen to you because of me." She stated, her tone softening.

Pete sighed and spoke softly, locking gazes with her, "It won't, because I know you won't let anything happen to me." Myka pursed her lips in response, her neck scrunched slightly. "C'mere gorgeous." Pete whispered softly before he pulled her into his arms.

Myka wrapped her arms tightly around Pete as he embraced her, and she sighed shakily into his neck. He himself knew full and well by now how much she abhorred his impulsiveness to leap first and look later. He also knew for a fact that he'd never hear the end of it from her if something happened to him, and that was because of the fact that she knew he was doing it to protect her at the risk of his own safety.

"Be back soon."

"You better." She replied as they pulled back, and she kissed him softly, her voice lowered to a whisper as she held his hands. "Don't be gone long?"

"I'll be back." Said Pete with a wink.

Myka smiled at Pete, and kissed him again before he left the room. Sighing she turned around and headed straight for their field kit, if they had a repeat encounter with their mystery duo later, she wanted to be prepared.

One by one, she extracted items from within the bag, and carefully inspected them before she placed them back inside the bag, three items she left out of the bag on one end of the coffee table. Finished she grabbed her laptop and set it down on the coffee table, reviewing the files briefly before she dismantled her SIG 229, piece by piece, which she focused on cleaning and inspecting. Myka looked up briefly as she heard the door open.

"What's up with all this?"

"Just checking over our gear, all of it, find out anything new while you were out?" She asked as she reassembled her SIG.

"Not yet," Pete replied. "You?"

"I glanced their files over, was going over our gear first." Myka looked up as she holstered her SIG; she narrowed her eyes at Pete as he offered her a Twizzler. "You better not be softening me up for doing something stupid later." She chided as she grabbed the piece of candy with her teeth.

"You have to stop being paranoid." Pete commented. "What is this stuff?"

Myka's neck scrunched slightly. "I'm not being paranoid." She gestured to the items on the coffee table before she spoke again. "I figured we could use them later, earplugs, and night vision binoculars." She stated as she reviewed the files on her laptop.

"Ear plugs?" Asked Pete. "Think it'll work?"

"It's worth a shot, plus I think this case is giving us a severe enough headache as is." Myka remarked, before she then added, "I wouldn't rule out them striking under cover of darkness, either."

"We'll be ready for them." Said Pete as he looked over the table. He saw something else under a magazine. "And that?"

"That's just the Tesla; I just wanted to make sure it was fully charged."

"Two SIGs, a Tesla, earplugs, binoculars, a Farnsworth, a couple of flashlights and some bad attitudes," Mused Pete. "I'd say we're fairly well covered. Should I break out the crossbow and holy water too?"

"Pete…" Started Myka in exasperation.

"I'm just hoping we won't need all this." Said Pete. "I also want to know where they're getting their toys. I wouldn't mind having a few Boombox grenades."

"I'm just being thorough; assassins aren't paid to fool around." She frowned at his mention of the grenades. "Boombox grenades?" She couldn't help but shoot him a look crossed somewhere between amusement and annoyance. "Really?"

"Yeah, I named them that," Pete Said. "Sounds cooler than 'sound grenade'. How lame is that?"

Myka smiled slightly and shook her head, leave it to Pete coin new terms.

Pete went to the kitchen and poured himself and Myka some orange juice. He came back and set the cups on the table and then sat in a chair and opened the paper he had bought. He flipped through the pages until he found his place and picked up where he had left off. As an after thought, he turned on the TV to the translated news channel.

"Trying your hand at multitasking are we?" She asked wryly, "Or just trying to impress me by doing two things at once?" Myka asked as she looked up from her laptop.

"Yes, I can read and listen." Said Pete. "This tourist paper might not have an angle for us. I want to hit as many bases as I can."

Myka only nodded, focusing her attention on the files on her laptop. "I don't know, do you think they'll even try to return to Abella's tonight? I mean given the way things went over at The La Reaux…"

"You have another lead we could follow?"

Myka bit back a grimace, there were art museums all over Paris, and_ any_ one of them could be the pair's next target. "Good point. Ok, I say we stakeout Abella's then. She didn't by any chance call you back with any new info did she? We're still trying to find that other half of our artifact…"

"Nope."

"Getting back to our original plan, how do you want to do this, chances are we manage to corner one of them, they're not going to be very talkative."

"I don't think capturing one is our best move." Said Pete. "At least not yet. Following them would be a better move. We couldn't make either of these two talk. That would most likely move this whole thing up the chain. Do you really want Mrs. Frederic involved in this?"

"And you're not Dirty Harry," Replied Myka pointedly. "Ok, so we tail them, see where they go, and we'll work with what we can from there,"

"Not in our rulebook," Said Pete in reference to the Harry Callahan remark. "We best leave early and get some water and stakeout food."

"Right." Myka closed up her laptop and leaned back and stretched her arms. "Should be some bottled water in the fridge; we can grab a couple deli sandwiches on the way out." Standing up she packed together the gear they'd take along, "Think they'll even show?" She asked, both knowing full well how many a stakeout was rather dull for lack of better words.

"Got me," Said Pete. "If not, we could always make out."

Myka only shook her head, and tossed the gear bag at him. "Only you would suggest such a thing." She chided before she wandered off in the direction of the bedroom to change.

"You're just mad you didn't think of it first." Said Pete with a grin.

"You just can't resist me in all black, I know it." She called out to him.

Pete made a sound of a wild cat growling as he went to the kitchen to collect some bottled water. He added it to their kit, before he then stowed an assortment of snacks inside as well.

Myka looked up as Pete entered the bedroom a scant few minutes later. She was dressed for stealth entirely in black; black leather pants, a slim fitting black top, lying over a chair back was her favorite black leather jacket. She stood up as she finished pulling on her boots, and reached for the jacket, pulling it on over her shoulders. "Got our gear together?"

"Yup."

Myka smiled coyly at Pete as he zipped her jacket, and she swatted his arm playfully as she exited the bedroom. "Break out your best blacks."


	10. Chapter 10

A few hours later found the duo parked a ways away from Abella's residence in their rental car; primarily they had been using cabs to get around the city, but in instances such as these, it seemed more logical to take an old school approach. The duo took turns keeping watch, at current Myka sat quietly observing the surrounding area through her night vision binoculars. So far things had been rather humdrum. She lowered the binoculars as she glanced at her watch, it was a little after 11:00 PM. Gently she nudged Pete with her elbow, he dozed quietly, his head resting against her upper arm.

"Wake up; it's your turn to keep watch." She spoke quietly. Pete murmured incoherently in his sleep before he shifted positions and nuzzled her arm before he drifted off again. "Pete!" Myka hissed a little more loudly and he snapped awake.

"I'm on it." Pete replied. "Just tired."

"I know I'm tired too." She remarked as she moved to snuggle next to him as he took the binoculars from her. "I'm wondering if they'll even show…" Myka frowned slightly as she reached for her bag of Twizzlers, finding the contents slightly lacking. "Did you eat the last of my Twizzlers?"

"Maybe...?"

Myka sighed, dropping the near empty package on the dashboard. She smiled wickedly as she reached towards his side of the dash and snatched up a nearly half empty package of Oreos. Pete lowered his binoculars, watching as his partner pulled apart the cookie to get at the frosting.

"You know those are the last of my Oreos…" He started and she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Payback's a bitch, Pete."

"Just let me have one more." Said Pete.

Myka handed him a cookie and they both sat back against the car seats and sighed. It had been a long night and they were both at that point where they felt exhausted and yet felt oddly wired. Maybe it was the Twizzlers.

A streetlamp somewhat illuminated Abella's shop-slash-apartment and Pete used the light to scan the perimeter. They had parked about nine cars down from the shop and had kept out of the lights of any passers-by. They also had not left the car which made for some awkward moments. At least their car had tinted windows.

"Anything?" Asked Myka.

"Nothin'." Said Pete.

The shop only had two doors; both were on the shop side. The apartment was more like a taken-over second area that probably used to be part of the shop. The windows were all barred and had large rosebushes planted under them. Even with thick clothing, trying to get in one of the windows would be cumbersome and would alert anyone inside the building. Pete and Myka had stopped by earlier that day and Pete moved several boxes of books in front of the back door. The only way in now was through the front.

"You're sure we got everything?" Myka asked.

"Back door is blocked, shop-side windows are mostly blocked by large, antique bookcases." Said Pete. "Apartment side has the bushes and a few bookcases as well. Only way in is through the front door and there is a streetlamp that illuminates it."

Myka was silent and Pete continued to peer through the binoculars. "Doesn't mean I feel great about it."

Myka remained silent, conveying she felt similar sentiments.

She sighed sleepily as her eyelids fluttered, torn between the battle to sleep and stay awake. A pop and fizzle emanated from outside, causing Pete to lower his binoculars, as the streetlamp brightened in intensity before blacking out completely. Pete rubbed at his eyes, before he glanced around at the other streetlamps noticing they had also started to flicker.

"Crap!" Pete said as he blinked his eyes to chase away the spots. "That seem odd to anyone else?"

Myka sat up and took the binoculars from Pete, who was still blinking the spots from his eyes. She narrowed her eyes as she spied the slightest bit of movement from the front door; had she blinked she might have missed it. Myka lowered the binoculars, swatting Pete on the arm as she did. "They're here, bastards snuck in right through the front door."

"Damn it."

"Should we wait till they leave, or should we follow them now?"

"We wait," Said Pete. "If we spook them they won't go back to where we need to go. They'll just bail."

"Alright," Started Myka. "But if they start burning the place down, we're going in. Have your earplugs ready just in case. We don't need them using sound grenades on us."

"Boombox grenades." Pete corrected.

"Tomayto, Tomahto." Myka replied as she shook her head.

With the spots in front of his eyes now gone, Pete resumed watch on the building. He wished that they had a directional microphone so they could listen in on what the two party crashers were saying but it was not in the current budget. Maybe Claudia could work something up later. Pete made a note to look into that when they got back.

"See anything?" Asked Myka.

"Nope, nada thing." Pete replied as he handed her the binoculars.

Myka took the binoculars and looked through them, studying the building front. It looked as quiet as it had an hour ago. They were probably tossing the place looking for that half key. That was still a mystery in and of itself. Why half a key? Where was the other half?

"Where do you think the other half of that key is, Pete?"

"Been thinking on it," Said Pete, his tone unusually serious. "I may have an idea but I want to research it first."

"Spill."

"No, not yet," Said Pete. "You'll just _Myka it_ once I bring it up."

Myka lowered the binoculars and locked gazes with Pete. "Define _Myka it_." She asked as she eyed him warily**.**

"You know, you'll rag on it and call it infantile or say it's not a credible idea and ruin my moment."

"Now you're just reaching."

"Hey, you've done it before."

"If anything I have only offered you my constructive criticism." Replied Myka, before she then added, "I mean what are you trying to tell me? That I'm opinionated? That my investigative methods don't carry as equal merit as your own? Is that it?"

"I'm just putting it out there," Pete said. "Not my intention to insult you. It's just...well, you do it a lot. Maybe you need to learn to trust my Batman-like instincts."

Myka could not help but sigh in irritation. "What does that make me then, Batgirl? Robin?"

"No, not Robin." Pete mused. "More like Catwoman. An ally, but not a sidekick. Smart, capable and very sexy in black."

In spite of the conversation, Myka could not help but smile, and she made a pawing motion at Pete just to humor him. "No way, no how will you ever talk me into wearing a black cat suit. Besides, the last time our op here in Paris nearly fell through was because of you."

"That guillotine was just plain screwy," Pete replied. "But we took care of it."

"You mean my catlike skills got us out of that mess." She replied pointedly.

"Well...wait, is that them?" Asked Pete nodding towards the scantly moonlit street.

Myka watched the pair through the binoculars and nodded. "It's them alright and they do not look very—"

Myka blindly grabbed Pete's jacket collar and pulled him towards her, just as the pair looked their way. Her back made contact with the passenger side window as she pulled Pete into a passionate kiss; her hands still on his jacket collar, Myka pulled his jacket down as she deepened the kiss, her fingers threading into his short hair as she pulled him closer. Pete pulled back slightly and broke off the kiss, letting his jacket slide off his shoulders, before he dove in to kiss Myka again.

From this angle they'd look like two lovers that had just gotten back from a very late night out on the town. She was glad she ditched her black leather jacket earlier; the top she wore underneath the jacket was a short-sleeved, low-cut design that could easily pass for club wear. Though the windows of their car were tinted, neither knew what kind of hardware the two assassins were packing, better to be safe than sorry. Myka glanced out the window briefly as Pete nibbled at her neck, watching as the duo made their way to a parked car further away.

"They're on the move, gray car." Myka sighed as Pete gave her hip a light squeeze and he trailed kisses down to her collarbone. "Pete now is neither the time nor the place…"

"Turn a guy on and then give him the cold shoulder." Said Pete.

"I was improvising!" Retorted Myka as she pushed Pete away, "Now come on let's follow 'em."

"I'm just jiving at you, Myka," Pete replied as he pulled his jacket back on, and he adjusted the collar. "Now cool it, we have to tail them."

Pete waited until the pair drove just out of their sight before he put the car in drive and followed after them. Their driving pattern seemed random at first, taking them through a series of side-streets and alley-ways before they got back on the main road. They followed them for nearly half an hour before they found themselves being led into an older area of the city. The side-streets and alley-ways here grew even narrower, and twice they nearly lost sight of the car.

"Crap." Mumbled Pete as he navigated the roads. "Did we go back in time or something? Feels like cobblestone under us."

"Where do you think they're even going?" Asked Myka.

"Got me."

"There they are, slow up, I think they're stopping."

Pete pulled into an alley well away from where the other two had stopped. From here on they went on foot. He stopped the car and ducked out, quietly pressing the door closed rather than pushing it. Swiftly making their way to the sidewalk, the two agents spotted their quarry entering the building just down the street from where they had parked their car.

Myka and Pete ducked down behind a low stone wall for cover, and scoped out their surroundings carefully, before they turned back to each other. "Are you getting anything?" Myka whispered quietly.

"I am getting a vibe?" He asked her quietly, Myka nodded. "Well, are you?" At her question, Pete made a motion with his hand, prompting an exasperated sigh from his partner. "Pete, I'm serious, we have no idea what could be waiting for us in there..."

Pete gave Myka's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "You're worried…I know…"

Myka gently grasped his hand, and squeezed it tenderly. "You just watch your back in there soldier."

"Marine."

Myka smiled slightly. "C'mon let's go what they drove all the way out here for." Taking out her earplugs, Myka put them in her ears; Pete did likewise with his own earplugs. Both snuck over to the building quietly, using the cover of darkness. Silently they moved towards where a pile of crates had been set up near an open window, dim light spilled out onto the street.

Pete and Myka slowly circled towards the building avoiding any passers-by or coming into view from any lit windows. The pair crept low and quiet towards the open window of the building in which the two mysterious agents of evil had gone. Coming up to the building, Pete and Myka pressed up on either side of the window and listened.

Even with the earplugs, it didn't take a genius to figure out what exactly was being discussed. Within the building were three people; their quarry, and a spindly looking man whom neither had seen before.

The two were speaking heatedly to the spindly man who was making wild gestures with his hands as he spoke. Apparently he had said something to upset Pierre for in the next instant he was lifted up off his feet by his shirt collar.

Nariko intervened and Pierre reluctantly dropped the spindly man to his feet. Hurriedly the spindly man turned around; rushing away into a corner. Moments later he reappeared with a paper scroll in one hand, and a metal briefcase in the other. He passed the paper scroll to Nariko. Pete and Myka exchanged glances before they resumed watch of the exchange.

He held up his hands as though in an apologetic gesture before he handed the briefcase over to Pierre. Pierre opened the briefcase briefly surveying its contents before he closed it shut. He smiled at the man and nodded at Nariko before he exited the building.

The man turned to Nariko seeming to expect payment, and both agents watched in shock as she grasped his hand and delivered a sharp blow to his stomach, within an instance he crumpled to the ground, a strange green substance bubbled from his mouth as his skin wilted away.

"Ok, don't let the crazy lady touch you." Said Pete quietly.

Myka tapped Pete's arm, drawing his attention and she gestured to where the pair had walked off. "We have to find out what they just took, c'mon." Reaching behind her back, Myka pulled out the Tesla, and indicated for Pete to take point.

Pete eyed the Tesla for a brief moment and then crept out after the two assassins. He made sure to sidestep Myka's path of fire as the Tesla was not exactly known for its surgical accuracy. The two hitmen were walking back towards their car and Pete figured now was as good a time as any to jump them. Standing up suddenly, Pete aimed his SIG at them.

"Freeze!" He started. "Drop the case!"

The pair eyed the two briefly, before Nariko casually extracted a grenade, and waved it tauntingly in front of them both. "Oh don't you dare…" Myka fired off the Tesla, and hit Pierre square in the chest, she didn't want to chance shooting at Nariko, especially considering she was holding a sound grenade, there was no telling how it would react to a full blast from the Tesla. Caught off guard, Nariko dropped the grenade, blinded.

Operating on autopilot, Pete tackled Myka to the ground, shielding her form with his. Both closed their eyes, dreading the impending sound wave that would be launched their way. Nothing. Pete spied that Nariko was slowly regaining her bearings and Pete quickly nodded at the abandoned briefcase as he rose to his feet. "Myka!"

Moving quickly, Myka ran in and proceeded to intercept the briefcase, near immediately she found herself tackled to the ground by Nariko. Growling, Myka delivered a sharp knee blow to the woman's stomach, and ducked to the side as she struck down at her with a blade hidden in the cuff of her sleeve. Myka grasped hold of the briefcase's handle blindly as she fought to break Nariko's hold while she struggled to free her blade from the cobblestone streets. The moment she got hold of the briefcase's handle, Myka swung out with the case and caught the female assassin in the head and knocked her out.

Sighing, Myka pushed the assassin off her, as Pete moved in to help her to her feet. "You alright?" Myka nodded, and glanced at the fallen pair as she pulled out her earplugs.

"That seemed too easy, c'mon let's get out of here!"

"C'mon!"

Myka and Pete tore off down the street back in the direction of their car, and quickly got inside, Pete on the driver side, Myka on the passenger side. It took two tries before the engine kicked to life, but they were soon on their way, unfortunately the narrow alleyways made the return to the main road a tedious process. Myka cursed as she glanced in the rearview. "Oh shit, Pete gun it, now!"

"What? Holy shit, hold on!" Pete hurriedly shifted gears as he threw the car into reverse, just barely missing their pursuer's car as they raced straight for them. Pete shifted gears again as he took them down a side street directly linked to main road.

"This is a side street? This is more of an alleyway!" Myka remarked as Pete navigated around the numerous dumpsters that lined the small space, "No kidding! Whatever's in that briefcase must be really important!" Pete replied as he cast a glance in the rearview.

Both agents ducked down low in their seats as the rear window cracked and shattered behind them. "Ok, they _really _want their briefcase back." Pete replied as another bullet pinged off the roof of their car.

"Ya think?" Retorted Myka as she reached for her SIG. "We need to get on the main road, _NOW!_"

"Working on it!"

"Just shut up and drive!" Replied Myka as she provided cover fire.

Pete heard a ricochet off of the trunk lid as he continued driving. He heard another shot and then Myka fired her SIG from the passenger side window. She was leaning out slightly to get a better aim. All Pete heard was the roar of the engine and gunfire. He focused on finding a larger road as he blazed down yet another alleyway.

"Damn it!" Shouted Pete as he ploughed through a small table of pottery. He grabbed Myka by her belt and pulled her back in as another cart was smashed, the pieces flying every which way.

"Ok, that was a little too close for comfort." Remarked Myka as she cast a glance over her shoulder.

"Yeah, no kidding," Pete said. "Hang on!"

Pete drove the car off a ledge that was about three feet high and smashed through a wooden fence. At last he had found a main road. He heard their pursuer's car impact on the street behind him. Pete turned onto the thankfully empty main road as Myka repositioned herself to fire back. When they hit a straight stretch of road, Pete drew his SIG and aimed through the shattered rear window of his vehicle. A small glance over his shoulder and then he fired two shots.

The front windshield of the pursuing vehicle exploded into a mass of shards between Pete and Myka's gunfire. Pierre was driving and he swerved as both he and Nariko were distracted by the glass. The delay did not last long however and they were soon back on the trail.

"These guys don't quit." Myka said as she reloaded.

"We need to ditch them before we go back to the hotel." Said Pete.

"How?" Myka asked. "They aren't showing any signs of slowing down!"

"Then slow them down!" Pete shouted. "Tires! Radiator! Crap, pothole!"

Pete swerved to avoid a large pothole that was surrounded by orange cones. Myka fired at their pursuers and distracted them. Pierre swerved the wrong way and his car struck hard into the pothole and stalled. Pete stopped the car.

"What are you doing, going with the sitting duck routine?" Myka commented heatedly.

"Watch and see," Said Pete. "By the way, you may want to buckle up."

"If you're planning what I think you're planning, I dislike it already." Myka remarked as she hurriedly snapped her seatbelt into place.

Pete shifted the car into reverse and floored it. The car powered backwards towards their pursuers. Pete could hear Pierre attempting to restart the vehicle. Myka was buckled up and preparing for what was to come.

A loud crash echoed throughout the area as Pete rammed into their pursuers' car. Pierre and Nariko were shaken by the impact and dazed as they scrambled to exit their vehicle. Myka took that time to unbuckle and shoot out the rear passenger side tire before Pete threw it into drive and sped away from the scene.


	11. Chapter 11

"That should slow them down for a while," He said. "We need to hole up and report to Artie. See what we've got."

Myka grimaced as she held a hand to her chest, their seatbelts may have kept them both from being propelled out the windshield but she knew for a fact they'd be sporting a nasty bruise from it later. "That and file a report with the authorities, I can only imagine what the rental place will say to the damage."

"I don't think it'll be a problem."

"We need to, to explain the damages."

"Artie has connections, I'm sure he can pull a few strings." Pete replied, his eyes focused on the road.

Myka hissed as she leaned back in her seat, and she earned a sideways glance from Pete. "Don't give me that look, I'm alright, just a little sore is all."

"Better that than run off the road," Said Pete. "Still hurting though."

Myka nodded in agreement. "I think it's a safe bet we'll both be cozying up to icepacks later. Hand me the Farnsworth, might as well call Artie now."

Pete reached into his coat pocket and handed Myka the Farnsworth. "Think he's up?"

"I doubt he knows what the definition of sleep is, he's almost always working. Besides it's only five in the evening back home anyway." She replied as Pete handed her the device.

"Even still, maybe we need to find him a nice lady friend, loosen him up." Commented Pete.

Myka only shook her head as she dialed in home base. A few buzzes later and she was greeted by Claudia. "Hey Claudia, is Artie there?"

"Nah, he just stepped out, why what do you need?" Myka shifted as she balanced the briefcase on her lap, she cursed as she spied it was a numerical lock. "Oh great," Myka muttered as she scrutinized the lock. "For starters cracking a numerical lock on a briefcase?"

Claudia rubbed her hands together. "Well if that's all you need, I'd be glad to be of assist—"

"DON'T!" Claudia all but leapt out of her chair at the sound of Artie's voice. "Dude, there could be something in the case that they—" She started and Artie held up a hand.

"I'm going to assume that they recovered the case from our two assassins, and I'm also going to assume they safeguarded said case, all the more reason not to open it!" He retorted.

"Well the assassins opened it up themselves, so I still say they should crack it geezer…" Retaliated Claudia.

That was all it took before both Artie and Claudia launched into a battle of barbs and wits. To say such a thing was not a common occurrence would be an understatement.

"Oh for crying out loud." Pete reached over and spun the lock on the case, and effectively unlocked it within seconds. Myka only stared back at her partner absolutely perplexed.

"What? They used the same kind of lock on our gym lockers in college; needless to say you learn to cheat them if you forgot your combination."

Myka shook her head and cautiously opened the briefcase, her eyes widened at the sight that greeted her. "Artie there's at least a dozen of those grenades in here. I think it's a safe bet they were planning on moving their work out of Paris once they finished here."

"That's a lot of sonic booms there." Said Pete as he picked up one of the grenades.

"Don't get any ideas Pete, what else did you two manage to find?" Asked Artie.

"Well, the crazy female assassin, Nariko, melted their contact."

"Melted?"

"Yeah, the man was stabbed and seemed to just...shrivel up from the inside," Pete commented. "It was not pleasant. Some green fluid oozed from his mouth afterwards as well."

"Yeah, Nariko had some kind of blade that was hidden in her sleeve; she tried to stab me with it, I think whatever was in the blade was the same thing she used to kill the dealer with. If I didn't know better I'd say we're up against a couple of alchemists." Remarked Myka.

"Possibly," Said Artie. "I'll have Claudia research any deaths involving the details you have described. Anyway, secure that case and its contents by all costs."

"Will do," Pete nodded. "Anything else on the mask?"

"Nothing yet on the other half of the key, per se," Artie started. "I have found something about a shipwreck but I am unsure of the connection, if any, with our artifacts. The mask itself, according to the articles, books and historical documents I have read, appears to have been worn by many men. All prisoners, for transport, punishment and sometimes even misdirection. The mask has a long, terrible history to it."

"Doesn't exactly sound like the fashion accessory of the year," Pete commented. "Artie, do you have any friends or safe houses located around here?"

"Why?"

"Well, I don't think it would be wise to keep the case on us," Said Pete. "And I don't want to trust the hotel safe either. I was thinking maybe some place off the grid. It'll leave us more free to operate if we don't have to worry about them getting a hold of this case."

"You have a point," Artie said slowly as he stroked his chin. "I may have a place. Get a piece of paper and a pencil."

"Got it."

Pete jotted down the address as Artie spelled it out. Pete used a single sheet of paper on a glass surface to prevent anyone from using the impressions on a notepad to find out the information.

"Have you got it all?"

"We're cool." Said Pete as he gave Artie a thumbs up.

"Very well, be safe agents."

Artie signed off the Farnsworth, as did Myka. Closing it back up, she handed it to Pete who placed it back into his jacket. It was nearly well past one in the morning when they returned to the hotel, after having dealt with the rental car, they'd secure the location provided by Artie later. There was only one official ice pack and Myka took it. Pete took a bag of frozen lima beans from the freezer and used that. The two of them settled down on the sofa and watched TV for a little while to gather themselves.

"So far Paris has not been exactly a dream vacation," Said Pete. "Still, I am glad to be here with you Myka."

Myka smiled at Pete as she gave his hand a tender squeeze. "For once, it'd be nice if we could have a _real_ vacation," Replied Myka. "Really be able to take some time off together, just us, you know?"

"Yeah, we could probably use one."

"Remember when we were stuck in that freezer in New Orleans?"

"I guess we could go back there," Pete started. "A little dark and damp, but certainly inexpensive. Did you find it romantic in a zombie-horde-is-coming-to-kill-us kind of way?"

Myka laughed as she smiled at his response. "No, some place warm, sunny, but not cliché."

"So where?"

"Venice."

Pete chuckled as he reached up to push a strand of hair away from her eyes. "You love the classics don't you, typical Myka." Pete replied in jest, a teasing smile on his face.

"But it's Venice Pete. It's so different from your usual city," Myka sighed, a smile gracing her features. "I bet it's beautiful." Myka chuckled humorlessly as she shook her head. "Our luck, we'll probably get sent there to hunt down an artifact."

"A haunted gondola," Started Pete. "Or a pizza cutter frequented by a frustrated chef? Think Artie would go for it?"

"That'll be the day." Replied Myka, she shifted so that she was facing Pete, and she kissed his hand softly as she stared into his eyes. "What about you?"

"Moi?"

"Yeah, where would you want to go, you know if we got some real time off together?"

"Hmm," Pete mused. "Somewhere non-typical, sunny and warm. Australia is what I would probably pick. More of an adventure. Something we could share and then get pictures taken with koalas."

"You, me, and a couple of koalas huh?" Myka mused. "Could be fun."

"Of course, now I want to see Crocodile Dundee." Said Pete.

"We never did watch it did we?"

"Maybe we can watch all three when we get back, eh?"

"They made three of those movies?"

"Yes, they made three of them."

"Whether or not we make it through all three movies of course remains to be seen." Teased Myka.

"Heh, anyway, what do you want to do with this case for tonight?"

"I think we should find a hiding place for both the grenades and the case, otherwise tonight's mission will have been all for naught." Myka remarked.

"Might be a good idea," Pete nodded. "Separate the case and the grenades. That way they don't get all their eggs in one basket, should they try something. After we get that squared away, I am going to lie down. Been a Hell of a night."

Myka nodded in agreement. "You take apart the case; I'll see what we can use to replace the grenades." Passing his bag of frozen lima beans to Myka, Pete turned his attention to the case, as she made her way into the kitchen to store the icepacks.

Pete opened the case and removed the boombox grenades, hiding them inside different bags in their closet inside the bedroom. Myka took the now empty case and filled it with cucumbers to give it the approximate weight of the grenades. The case she then placed, after some thought, behind the entertainment center, Pete came out of the bedroom and went into the kitchen. When he came out he handed Myka a cup of hot chamomile tea.

"Thanks Pete," She replied as she took the offered cup of tea. "I'm sorry about earlier, I was just, I was really scared that something might have happened tonight." Myka sighed as she stared into her tea. "I was so worried that something would happen to you and I nearly got myself killed in the process."

"Hey, it's me," Said Pete. "I survived the Marines and the Secret Service. Why were you worried?"

Myka sucked in a breath, before she spoke up again, "I'm always trying to keep you safe, but look at me now, I nearly got myself taken out tonight, I-I nearly got melted! What if I never dodged that attack of hers, what if she…" She stopped in mid-sentence, fighting back tears as she berated herself mentally, she had been so focused on completing the mission that she practically threw herself into harm's way in order to retrieve the briefcase without a second thought.

Her knuckles whitened as her grip tightened on the teacup. She prided herself on keeping Pete safe. Originally she viewed her reassignment to the Warehouse as a form of punishment, but if there was one thing she was absolutely certain of at the time, it was that she would not, and could not lose another partner. Since day one, Pete had put his complete trust and faith in her, even when she was certain she was on the verge of losing her mind. From that point on, she made a silent promise to herself, and to Pete, that she would keep him safe. She would not let him become another Sam.

But what if the scenario played out differently tonight? What if Nariko had hit her mark? Exhaling shakily, Myka barely registered her partner's hands on hers.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Myka!" Pete took the tea from her trembling hands, setting it on the counter behind him. Turning back towards Myka he pulled her into his arms, "C'mere…" He whispered softly as he guided them both to the sofa. Sitting down, he pulled her closer, his strong arms encircling her protectively as he dropped a gentle kiss to her brow. Pete spoke up softly after several moments had passed his voice a low whisper, "Don't beat yourself up over it…"

"Don't go telling me you won't do it, because I know you," Myka remained silent as Pete spoke, and she bit down on her lip, she closed her eyes as he spoke, her hand reaching for his in silent reassurance. She would never admit it, but sometimes he knew her better than she knew herself.

"Myka, you were going to go toe-to-toe to with that gal either way whether I liked it or not…you're brave like that."

"More like brave but stupid," She replied through her tears.

"No that's more my forte," He replied as he softly stroked her hair, "You're brave, and you're smart, exceptionally smart, not to mention the only woman I know who can best me in hand-to-hand combat." Myka chuckled at his remark in spite of her tears.

Pete pulled back to look into her eyes. "Myka you're a crack agent, you're just too hard on yourself by constantly striving to be a perfectionist. Besides there's no way I'd let my partner get melted, even if it meant she'd chew me out for it later, you know why?"

"Why?" Myka whispered.

"It's because I love you." His tone softened as he replied, and he gently traced his fingers through her locks as he continued to speak, "I can't imagine life with you," His tone was decidedly lower, barely audible to his own ears as he spoke again, "I don't want to imagine life without you."

Myka smiled tearfully as he lowered his lips to hers, and she wrapped her arms around his neck as she returned the kiss tenderly.

Pete softly kissed away her tears as he pulled back, and adoringly nuzzled her nose. "I want my angel to stay earthbound right now." Myka smiled slightly at the remark, "That was bad wasn't it?" He grimaced as he closed his eyes.

Myka kissed Pete again softly. "Coming from you it's sweet."

"Just remember," Pete started. "It's always you and me versus them. I'll _never_ let you stand alone. Okay?"

"You better not, I will not _lose_ another partner, if I lose you, it'll crush my heart." She sniffled. It had taken time, but she had managed to come to terms with Sam's death. If she had to relive that same experience with Pete, she was certain that it would cripple her. He had helped her heal, pick up the fragmented pieces of her heart and make her feel whole again. He gave her a reason to smile, but most of all to live.

Pete softly traced away Myka's tears with his thumbs before kissing her forehead and then pulling her close. He had not realized how tightly she was wound when it came to matters of his safety. He was just doing as he had done in the Marines and the Secret Service, his own brawling style. What happened happened. You just made sure it happened more to the other guy.

"If you want, I can call up an old buddy of mine from the Corps," Said Pete. "We can start fight training together. Maybe if we were more in sync with each other as we fought, you would not worry so much?"

"I don't know if Artie would agree to it." Replied Myka. She shifted slightly, and nuzzled his neck as she spoke softly, "But if he would allow it, I would be up for it, otherwise you can teach me, and I'll try not to worry so much, only because you asked me though."

"Ok, cool," Nodded Pete. "Come on, let's go get some sleep. I don't know about you but I still feel a little battered and bruised."

"I thought you'd never ask." Smiled Myka.

Pete and Myka stood up from the sofa and started for the bedroom. Pete grabbed a chair from the kitchenette and set it into place under the doorknob of their hotel room after setting out the Do Not Disturb sign. He started to turn and head away towards the bedroom when, as an after thought, he placed some empty glass soda bottles on the chair.

Satisfied, he went into the bedroom and closed the door, placing a second chair under the bedroom doorknob. Myka gave him an odd look.

"Just in case."

Myka smiled at Pete as she walked over to him. Lovingly she traced her fingers down the sides of his face, and down his neck, before she leaned in closer to kiss him tenderly. Pete flinched slightly as her hands came to rest against his chest, and he reluctantly broke off the kiss.

"Be gentle with me." Myka chuckled softly in between kisses, "Aren't I always?"

Pete smiled slightly as she gently tugged his shirt off over his head, before she proceeded to loop her arms around his neck, and he kissed her passionately. Myka threaded her hands into Pete's hair as she stepped backwards. She yelped as the back of her legs made contact with the mattress, throwing off her balance, and sent them both crashing atop the bed.

"You call this being gentle?" Pete teased. Myka nipped at his lips as she propped herself up on her elbows. "Shut up soldier."

Pete dipped his head down and he whispered softly against her lips before he kissed her back lovingly. "Marine."

Myka threaded her hands into his hair as she returned the kiss, her hands drifting down the sides of his face to his neck, coming to rest on his shoulders. Pete rolled onto his side, as the kiss slowly intensified, and he softly stroked the side of her face as they pulled apart, and he gazed deep into Myka's eyes. Myka sleepily nuzzled his nose as she planted a soft kiss against his lips. "I love you."

Pete smiled as he softly kissed the tip of her nose, and then her lips. "Love you too angel." Myka draped an arm loosely across Pete's waist as she closed her eyes. Pete closed his eyes, and the pair soon drifted off to sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

Pete awoke to the sound of the Farnsworth's tinny buzzing. Slivers of light broke through the blinds and Pete shielded his eyes as he made his way towards the buzzing. He opened his eyes slowly and rubbed them as he yawned. Searching through the pockets of his coat, he finally found the device and opened it. Claudia's face appeared on the screen.

"Mornin' Sunshine!" Claudia said brightly. "What's the score, P? Get me anything? How did you sleep? Myka okay? How is Paris?"

"Whoa, whoa..." Said Pete. "Too many questions this early, Speed Racer. I haven't even had any coffee yet."

"Sorry," Claudia replied. "Been up all night on the Red Bull Express! Feeling punchy and jittery."

"Up all night...?" Asked Pete as he looked for his t-shirt.

"Yeah! All night," Said Claudia. "Looking for information on the case. Found something too, which is why I am calling. You awake yet?"

"Sorta," Pete mumbled as he put on his t-shirt. "What'd you find?"

"The Elegant Albatross."

"What?"

"The Elegant Albatross," Repeated Claudia. "It's the name of a ship that went down some time ago. It was recovered about a year ago by a private salvage firm. They sold most of the loot off to collectors and such. They also donated some pieces, but I think it was just to cover their butt with taxes."

"Okay?" Pete said.

"Well...on the list of things recovered was a key," Claudia said. "But not just any key, half of a key."

"So...you mean it's...?" Pete asked, his voice suddenly louder.

"Ya-huh."

Myka sleepily opened her eyes, the distinct sound of her partner's voice having roused her from her slumber. "Hmm? What's going on?" She asked as she lifted her head up from her pillow.

"Holy crap," Pete said. "Do you know where it is? Where it was sold?"

Myka furrowed her brow at his response, and piped down. She listened closely, catching bits and pieces of the conversation as he carried on his chat with Claudia. Had she found something?

"As a matter of a fact," Claudia started. "I do. It was sold to The La Reaux estate."

"No way..." Pete said, his voice trailing off.

"The La Reaux?" Myka sat up, and she swung her legs over the side of the bed, now completely awake.

"Way!" Said Claudia. "Hope this helped you out. Claudia get sleep now! Bye-bye!"

The Farnsworth went dark and Pete closed it up, replacing it into his jacket pocket. He stroked his chin in thought. There had to be more to that chance meeting at the estate than he realized. The assassins knew where the other half of the key was already. Obviously they did not have time to get a hold of it yet. Maybe he and Myka screwed up their plan. Maybe there was still time.

"Get dressed Myka!" Said Pete as he pulled out some clothes. "We have some retrieving to do!"

"Whoa, hold up," She started holding out her hands. "First I want you to relay back to me, whatever new information it was that Claudia just relayed to you."

"Claudia located the other half of Voltaire's Key," Said Pete. "And get this; it's at The La Reaux."

"The other half of Voltaire's Key is at The La Reaux? When did she find this out?"

"She's been up all night," Pete said. "We need to get back in there."

"But Pete, how are we going to get back in there? After what happened it's likely they tightened up security, not to mention put the place on lockdown."

"We'll work it out," Pete replied. "Myka why are you looking at me like tha..."

Myka snapped her fingers in realization, "It's the sound grenades, that's what they've been using to pull off these heists without any trouble! The wearer of the mask is likely unaffected by the blast, so they use the grenades to take out security…and our masked man…makes off with the haul in the confusion."

Pete shook his head, "No wait, that can't be right, how do we even know that Iron Man _isn't_ immune to the effects of the boombox grenades?" He asked as he cast a glance in her direction.

"How do you mean?"

Pete gestured with his hands as he spoke, "Well the entire head is enclosed in that mask right? The boombox grenades emit a high-pitched sound wave; this is just a theory but what if the same thing happens when you hit a pipe or a bell?"

Myka cringed as she understood where he was going with this. "Really bad headache?"

"I'd say with the mask on, it'd rival a hangover from Hell." Nodded Pete. "Artie might not like it, but we may have to use one of the boombox grenades just to get that thing off our Iron Man."

"Provided we can get anywhere near him…or her…" Remarked Myka.

"First things first, my lovely lady," Started Pete. "The other half of the key."

"That thing could be anywhere; I wonder if even our mystery duo knows where to find it."

"Oh, I think I know where it is," Pete nodded as he put on his shoes. "Just need to work out how to get to it."

"Really?" Asked Myka, "Care to share with the rest of the class?"

"I think it's hidden behind a false wall."

"Which could be anywhere in The La Reaux."

"You remember those pictures I took of our two new friends?" Pete asked. "They were standing in front of a wall and examining it. A plain wall. That tells me that something is there."

Myka nodded, it was a good theory. "You never cease to astound me, don't ever change." She stated as she gave him a brilliant smile.

"Well, I suppose everyone is entitled to one or two flashes of brilliance," Pete commented. "C'mon, get dressed. Well, wait..."

Pete pulled Myka close and kissed her, his hands coming to rest on her hips. He loved the way she felt after just waking up.

"Ok, now get dressed."

Myka looped her arms around Pete's neck, and she nuzzled his nose, before she proceeded to trail kisses along his jawline. "Tease." She whispered softly in jest as she pulled at his earlobe lightly with her teeth, knowing it drove him nuts. She stepped away, flashing him an impish wink.

"I'm not the only one." Said Pete with a sly wink.

Pete left the bedroom taking with him his SIG and jacket. They would have a light breakfast of orange juice and toast before heading out.

* * *

An hour later found the pair back on the streets, and headed for The La Reaux. Sure enough the place had been closed up for the day after yesterday's incident. Myka sighed as she surveyed the area. Within she could spy a number of guards on patrol, roaming the grounds.

"Going to have to hold out 'til later tonight, place is crawling with security." She remarked as she cast a glance in Pete's direction briefly. She looked back in his direction hearing a sound from behind her, and she spied he had the digital camera out and he had it pointed in her direction. Near immediately she blushed and turned her head.

"C'mon beautiful, let me see that pretty smile." Coaxed Pete.

Myka's blush only deepened, and she cleared her throat lightly, before she replied quietly, "I'm not very photogenic. If you're going to put that thing to use then do it." She stated as she gestured to their surroundings.

Pete aimed the camera and took a few shots. He checked the images on the camera and smiled. He aimed the camera again and caught Myka looking away, the wind blowing her hair ever so gently. "C'mon pretty lady," Started Pete. "Look my way."

Myka turned towards her partner, giving him a shy smile, she stuck her tongue out at Pete as he snapped the picture, and he shook his head. "You ruined it!" Myka shrugged her shoulders. "Am I off the hook now?" Pete smiled as he grasped her hand, "Hardly, we're just getting started."

For the next few minutes, the pair walked around the outside of the estate, and once again fell into tourist mode. Though right now Pete had to admit he felt more like someone who landed the best photo shoot of his life. He had no idea how he managed to do it, but he had convinced his stunningly beautiful lover to pose for him. Myka claimed she was only doing this strictly for the mission, but if he hadn't known better she seemed strangely happy, though a little camera shy.

He was convinced she would put any other everyday supermodel to shame. That and she looked great in purple. He was glad she opted to wear the lavender sundress again.

Pete took several pictures of Myka and the background. It may have been a ploy to cover the fact they were gathering Intel on the estate's security, but this did not lessen Pete's enjoyment of it.

"Are we done yet?" Myka asked as she leaned against the cast iron gate, she had one hand resting on the bars, in her other hand she held her purple beret to her face, half hiding her features.

"I guess we have enough shots," Said Pete. "At least for now. Let's take a look."

The two sat down together on a stone bench, and went over the pictures together. Pete wrapped his arms around Myka's waist as she looked over the pictures on the camera. He softly nuzzled her cheek as he cast a glance at their surroundings, the Marine in him doing a precautionary sweep of the area before he turned his attention back to the beautiful woman wrapped in his arms. "And you claim to not be photogenic." He whispered as he kissed the back of her ear softly.

Myka smiled as he pressed a soft kiss to her cheek, if not for him she'd likely not have agreed to her little photo shoot, but she was also doing it for the mission so there.

"I think we have enough to work with here," Myka remarked, Pete nodded in agreement. "Cool, I think we need just one more picture though." Before she could reply, Pete took the camera from Myka and turned it towards them both. Pete tickled her sides playfully prompting a laugh from Myka and he snapped a couple pictures of them both, even managing to sneak in a kiss as she turned towards him.

"Just remember to separate these later," She remarked as they stood up,

Pete flashed her a debonair smile. "But of course, cher."

Stowing the camera inside his jacket, Pete put an arm around Myka's waist as they walked away. They had used their car which Artie had had a friend work on overnight. The man had come to pick it up; leaving a similar car in its place should they require one. When they came out in the morning they found the original car back in place and repaired. They would have no issues with the rental company.

When they got to the car, Pete got behind the wheel and gave Myka the camera. She downloaded the images to the laptop as they headed away from the estate. It was time for food again as the toast and orange juice did not hold him.

"Think they have a burger joint around here?" Pete said as he drove. "Hopefully Claudia can get us something useful from those shots."

"Burger sounds great right about now actually, and maybe a fruit smoothie." Replied Myka, feeling a bit hungry herself, her response earned her a chuckle, and she continued to wordlessly work with her laptop.

"Alright, sent the shots we took of the estate to Claudia. I also asked her to send some blueprints of the building for us to study." She remarked as she closed up her laptop.

"Right, so we come back tonight," Pete nodded. "We best prepare for guests to join the party too."

"Agreed, we're going to have to take a stealth approach to get anywhere near that key. I wouldn't rule out our new friends dropping in either."

"I'd say it was a safe bet to expect company."

"Well this time we'll be ready for them."

A short while later, the pair located a burger joint, and grabbed lunch which consisted of burgers, fries, and shakes, or in Myka's case a fruit smoothie. After eating, the two drove back to the hotel. It would do neither much good to amble about the city today, and after their last encounter with their assassin fiends, extra precaution was in order.

Myka and Pete fought over the last of the fries as they went over their gear for their return visit to The La Reaux later that night. They'd be using a similar load out to the night before, only this time they would be packing along Kevlar vests. Pete was skeptical if it would have any effect against the bladed tool that Nariko had used, but it put him slightly more at ease especially if it meant keeping Myka from being hurt, or in this case melted.

Reaching for a fry, Myka looked over their load out before she turned back to Pete. "Think this'll be enough?"

Pete placed a gentle kiss on her shoulder as she popped the fry into her mouth. "They wanted Hell, they're going to get it."

Pete wrapped his arms around Myka's waist, and he pulled her into his arms. Myka sighed contentedly as she rested her head on his chest; she loved this, just being in his arms.

"You're gorgeous."

"Liar, you're just saying that," She replied as she blushed.

Pete shook his head, "No I mean that, you'd put those other phony, plastic women to shame, you on the other hand, are the real deal..." Pete spoke softly as he trailed kisses along her neck, "…an angel, a goddess," He nuzzled her ear lightly as he whispered, "Stunningly beautifully."

Myka shivered as he pulled on her ear gently with his teeth, much like she had done this morning. "Should have seen that one coming." Myka turned her head towards Pete and she captured his lips in a passionate kiss.

She broke off the kiss as she heard an email alert sound from her laptop. Pete closed the laptop as she reached for it. "It's still early, we can wait."

"It could be Claudia with the blue—"

Pete silenced Myka with another kiss, before he broke it off, "Me? Different story."

Myka pulled at the buttons on Pete's shirt as he held her gaze, "Well, if you put it that way, I suppose it can wait…" Pete gave a low contented growl as she kissed him, all but tossing his shirt to the side before he lowered Myka to the floor, locked in a passionate embrace.

"Think…if we…ignore it...they'll…go away?" Pete remarked in between kisses as a familiar buzzing noise greeted their ears.

"One of us…better answer it…it could be Artie…or Claudia." Myka sighed as they shared a long drawn-out kiss, and she gently pushed Pete back. "I better answer it, let me up."

Pete shifted slightly, allowing his partner to sit up. Myka straightened her dress and her hair before she turned to the small device and flipped it open. Pete pressed a soft kiss to her knee, before he lay back and rested his head against her legs.

"Hey Myka, I sent you those blueprints of The La Reaux like you asked me to. I have absolutely no frakkin' clue what Artie did, but the computers are acting kind of wonky here so I wanted to make sure the files came through alright. Please tell me they got through to you okay?"

Myka cleared her throat as she propped the Farnsworth up on the coffee table, and she turned her attention back to her laptop. "I'm only just getting to them now. We were…I mean…I was busy with something…" Myka heard a muffled snort of laughter from Pete, and she elbowed him in ribs as she tapped at the keys.

Pete chuckled.

"So, have the Warehouse's computers gone completely FUBAR?" Claudia asked after about a minute or two had passed.

Myka shook her head. "Nope, I got the files right here, Claude."

Claudia breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank God, well time to go lecture Artie." She stated with a roll of her eyes. "Say hi to Pete for me." She remarked as she flashed her a knowing wink.

Myka clamped her hand over her partner's mouth; altogether certain he would try something to embarrass her. She smiled back at Claudia sheepishly. "Sure thing, catch you later Claude." With that Myka and Claudia switched off their respective Farnsworths.

"I think she's on to us." Remarked Pete conspiratorially as he pressed a kiss to her palm. "Sure you separated the pics before you sent them?" He asked her in jest.

"Of course I did! I'm sure she would have said something if I hadn't…I mean right?" Myka asked Pete, her brow furrowing in confusion.

Pete shrugged. "I imagine if she did know about us, we'd never hear the end of it from her." He raised a finger. "Leena on the other hand? I wouldn't rule it out." Pete rolled onto his stomach, and stooped to a kneel before he lovingly traced his finger down to the tip of her nose, and down her lips. "Right now though, don't know, don't care, I just want you back in my arms."

"I suppose we can always go over the files later…" She replied as she nuzzled his nose, and gave him a soft kiss. "Pete, don't take this the wrong way, but I'd rather we move things to the bedroom."

Pete chuckled as he gave her a soft kiss. "Now you tell me." His response earned him a swat on the arm, and he smirked at her devilishly before he threw Myka over his shoulder in a fireman's carry.

"PETE!" Myka yelped out, she fell into a fit of giggles as he tickled the back of her knees. "I'm going to kick your ass!" She managed in between giggles as he carried her into the bedroom.

Pete lowered Myka down gently onto the bed, and as he leaned down to kiss her, she flipped him, pinning him beneath her, catching him completely off guard. Pete chuckled as she leaned down to kiss him, and he ran his fingers through her hair as she smirked at him. "Now, where were we?"


	13. Chapter 13

By dusk, the pair of agents were dressed and ready for their evening. Rather than a suit and tie and a sleek evening dress, the two Warehouse agents were decked out in black. Pete had bought a medium blue blazer to wear over his attire to make it look a little more club-dress in style. Myka had gotten herself a red leather jacket. It had short sleeves and more than its fair share of zippers.

"What's going on there, Michael Jackson?" Asked Pete. "You ready to 'Beat It'?"

"No, but I'll beat you if you make one more crack about my jacket!"

"The gang is going to love this."

"What?" Asked Myka. "You did not just...!"

Pete smirked slightly and placed the digital camera back inside his jacket pocket. Myka glared at him for a moment, but she could not stay angry. After all, he did have a point. Besides, she never could stay mad at him. That boyish, sexy smile, the way his eyes twinkled when he looked at her. The way he held her.

"So, what do you think," Pete asked. "Two boombox grenades or three?"

"You don't honestly think _he'll_ show do you?" She replied.

"I don't think we'll run into Iron Man tonight," Said Pete. "Striking twice at the same place? Too obvious for these two. I think they'll opt for a more covert strike."

"Good point, okay, so that leaves us with just having to worry about getting in and getting out." Myka replied, before she turned to step away. Near immediately she found herself halted as Pete grasped hold of her shoulder, and she turned back towards him.

"We need to be on our A-game tonight though, Myka," Pete said, his tone suddenly very serious. "These two are vicious. They have already tried to kill us once. I hate to say this, but if we have to fight them tonight, play for keeps."

"Pete, I can handle myself, besides I plan on watching your back, not just mine." She stated pointedly as he loosened his grip on her shoulder.

"I know you can handle yourself, Myka," Pete said quietly, his gaze holding hers. "The difference between you and me is that I was trained to kill first, ask questions second. I don't want you to hesitate if the moment comes. I will be there for you, but I may not be able to cover you at all times. Just promise me that I'll be holding you in my arms on the balcony as we watch the sunrise tomorrow."

Myka held his gaze evenly; his already dark brown eyes seemed even darker, almost black. Myka stepped closer to Pete, and she placed her hand gently over his heart as she rested her forehead against his. "I made a promise to myself that I will not fail you as a partner, and I intend to keep it. I do not intend on letting you fight this out alone, no way, no how." She spoke quietly.

"I will hold you to that." Pete replied as they shared a long, lingering kiss. He sighed as he rested his forehead against hers, his hands rested gently on her upper arms, softly tracing the skin with his thumbs. "C'mon, we better finish getting ready." Pete whispered quietly and Myka nodded as she pulled away.

Pete stowed his gear carefully about his person and slipped on his blazer. He felt a coldness about the room that he had not felt previously. Myka was glancing at him as she prepared, but it was not her that was causing the feeling. He hoped that he had not scared Myka with his speech; he just felt that it had to be said. He could not even imagine flying back to South Dakota without her next to him.

When they were both ready, they left the room and locked the door. They walked through the hallway as a happy couple to go unnoticed by those people traveling through the carpeted hallways. When they got onto the elevator, a silence fell about them again and Pete saw Myka looking at the side of his face. He was falling back into Marine mode.

They were silent as they made their way to the car and all the way to their destination. Pete parked a block away from the estate and the pair quietly made their way through the streets, their fashionable jackets left in the car.

Pete & Myka used the shadows for cover as they made a slow and stealthy approach towards the estate. Deciding to enter the rear of the building, the pair circled around the back, and spied a set of windows that were unguarded. Myka looked around at the area carefully, and she nodded at a series of ventilation ducts. "Vents?"

"Not my favorite option, but it will have to do." Said Pete.

"Alright then, c'mon." The duo walked over to the closest ventilation duct, and Pete knelt down. He nodded at Myka as he held out his hands. Cautiously she placed one foot on his hands, and bolstered herself as she stood on his shoulders. Standing up, Pete supported her legs as she pried the vent open, and she crawled into the opening.

After Myka climbed into the vent, she secured and lowered a cord for Pete. "Alright climb up, carefully." Pete climbed the cord and made his way into the vent as well. It was tight quarters inside and Myka was already moving on.

"Now I know what a TV dinner feels like," Pete commented, mostly to himself. "At least the view is good."

"And you were worried about me staying focused." She remarked with a roll of her eyes, as they navigated through the vent.

"Oh, I am focused," Pete said. "Keep moving. We need to get to that other half of the key."

"Exactly, focus on the mission, not me!" She hissed at him. The pair drew to a halt as they stopped over a grate. Myka glanced at the area below them before she moved to pry the grate loose, and she nodded at Pete. "Should I go first, or do you want to go ahead?"

"I'll go first," said Pete quietly as he worked the screws out of the grate. Myka held a small collector to catch each screw so that it would not hit the ground. When all of the fasteners had been removed, Pete held the grate while Myka tied a cord to it. He then safely and quietly lowered the grate to the floor. Pete crawled over the opening and slowly lowered himself down, dropping the rest of the way.

He landed quietly and scouted the area before signaling Myka to drop down as well. Myka dropped free from the vent and Pete caught her, setting her down on her feet.

Myka kissed his cheek softly as he set her down, and she flashed him a slight smile before she fell back into mission mode.

"Anything look familiar?" She remarked as she cast a glance down the halls.

Pete checked the blueprints that Claudia had scanned and Claudiaized and uploaded to Pete's phone. It was like he was using something out of a spy thriller. He had to repress an urge to speak in a Connery accent.

"According to this, I came through this wall here." Pete said quietly.

"Then I went down this long hallway and ended up over here. So we need to go through that way and take a left."

"Ok, let's go, got my back partner?"

"Always."

Myka gave him that smile he loved in reply. Pete could never get tired of seeing her smile, he hoped by the night's end it wouldn't be the last time he saw it. Taking point, Myka led the way. Pete followed closely behind at her heels, eyes and ears alert. For the most part it was ghostly quiet in the estate. 

Pete, using his modified phone, guided Myka through the maze of hallways and rooms. They dodged guards as necessary thanks to the GPS-like nature of the phone. It was slow work, but they had to be careful.

Eventually the two came across the area in question, which had since been taped off. Two guards stood watch at either end of the hall.

"How you wanna do this?" She spoke quietly to Pete.

Pete drew a small pistol from a holster on his vest and quietly drew back the slide. He took aim at the far guard and fired. He quickly racked the slide again and did the same to the other guard. Both guards dropped with hardly a sound and hit the floor like sacks of potatoes.

"Well that's one way, how long they gonna be out for?" Myka asked as they quickly moved towards the two downed guards.

"Maybe an hour." Said Pete.

"All the time we need, quick move them out the line of sight, and we'll work on that wall." Myka replied as she knelt to help Pete with the one guard, before they moved onto the next. Once both guards were safely out of sight, the duo moved towards the wall.

"Ok, they were standing right about here and staring at this section of the wall."

Myka scrutinized the wall closely, and stepped over to it, running her hands across the surface. Lightly she rapped her knuckles against the wall; for the most part it was largely solid. She frowned as she stepped back, and studied the wall again closely, looking for imperfections.

She sighed as she shook her head, "Its normal, solidly built, no hollow…" Both froze as Pete nudged the wall with the toe of his boot, the pair exchanged glances as a piece chipped away, before they dropped to a kneeling position.

"Design flaw?" Remarked Myka as she picked at the plaster.

"Seems odd though." Said Pete as he moved down the wall a few feet and kicked another section. Nothing happened. Moving back to Myka, he helped her work through the plaster.

The pair dug through the plaster, and it wasn't long before they reached solid wood.

Pete grumbled at the sight. "Great dead end."

Myka held up a hand. "Wait a second, this panel is hollow, help me pry it open."

Pete and Myka worked at a section of wood panels that were old and in need of replacement. Within minutes they had exposed a small tunnel.

"You can't be serious; we have to climb down there?" Myka replied as she examined the small space.

"I'll take point this time," Pete said as he ducked down and made his way inside. "I don't think this was in the blueprints."

"Just be careful," She remarked as she climbed in after her partner. "There's no telling how old this section of the building is, I'd watch where you're crawling."

"At least if I fall, you'll know where not to crawl."

"And if we both fall?"

"Well, look at this way; one of us will likely break the other's fall."

"Comforting."

Using a penlight held between his teeth, Pete very slowly made his way through the dingy crawlspace. Dust, cobwebs and piles of wood rot made the trip slow as Pete used a knife to test the floor ahead of him as he moved.

After an hour the pair reached a dead end. Pete looked around and saw that there was no way to progress further.

"This never happened to Charles Bronson." Muttered Pete.

Using his knife, Pete began to test the walls and ceiling of the dead end. There had to be something here that he was missing. The wood rot gave way to nothing but more rotted wooden beams. Pete sat back for a moment and took in the situation.

"Great, so now what do we do?" Myka asked as she took in their surroundings.

"Doesn't look like we're going anywhere." Pete said quietly.

"You think we missed a turn, say a branching tunnel?" Myka replied as she cast a glance back in the direction they came through the tunnel.

"I don't think we missed anything like a turn off back there." Pete commented as he tapped his knife against the floor of the dead end.

"So, in a nutshell we're lost."

"It's possible, but I'm not getting that..."

_*thunk*_

"...feeling...?"


	14. Chapter 14

Pete tapped his knife again and got the same sound. Using the blade he cut into the wooden boards of the floor and exposed a section of metallic plate after a few moments. Pete looked up at Myka and the pair worked at the wooden boards of the floor and set the pieces off to the side. Eventually what they found appeared to be some kind of hatch.

"Ok, that's weird." Said Pete.

"What do you suppose it is? Some kind of vault?"

"I don't know, it's a hatch..." Said Pete. "Odd thing to find in a rotting crawlspace."

"Maybe they don't even know about it, it's a very old building Pete."

"Maybe," Nodded Pete. "It isn't even on the latest blue prints."

"Let's try and pry it open, see where it takes us."

Pete gripped the hatch wheel in his hands and attempted to turn it. It was heavily rusted and seemed highly disinclined to budge. He thought it moved perhaps the barest fraction of an inch, but he was not sure.

"Give me a minute with it." Pete grunted out, beads of sweat permeated his brow as he fought with the wheel to little avail. "Almost…got…it!"

"Oh for God's sake, by let's I meant us, no need to be all macho around me." Myka remarked as she pushed her partner slightly to the side. Myka ducked under Pete's arms and she placed her hands on the wheel. "Here, let's try this together, on three, one…two…three! Pull!"

"Use those muscles, girl." Pete grinned.

"Put your back into it!" She retorted as they gave another hard tug, the wheel turned loosely, a loud grinding noise met their ears, no doubt years worth of rust coming loose. The hatch opened with a loud creak, and both agents fell against each other tiredly.

"I know _THIS_ never happened in The Great Escape."

Myka chuckled wryly, and she gave Pete's arm a gentle swat. "So, any idea what's down there?" She remarked as she peered down the hatch.

"Let's take a look-see." Pete replied as he moved towards the opening and used the penlight to illuminate the dark interior.

The penlight was small, but fitting for use in a tight space. The opening was big enough for him, and thus for Myka, to enter but he wanted to be sure of where they would land. Scanning the interior, Pete saw a small metal ladder built into the wall below the hatch. It also looked rusty, but solid. After all, they never built anything like they used to.

"I see...a built-in ladder and...maybe a tunnel?" Pete started. "Not much beyond that. Still, it's big enough to stand up in. I'll go first."

Pete handed the penlight to Myka and then entered the hatchway and made his way carefully down the ladder. The rungs wobbled a little under his weight, but they did not show signs of giving way. Once he touched bottom, Pete drew a larger flashlight and turned it on, shining it around him.

"Yup, definitely a tunnel."

"Pete, I'm coming down, I'm not sure I trust this ladder, so stay close." Myka called out.

"Ok." Pete replied as he focused his light on the ladder and hatchway.

Myka slowly made her way down the ladder and Pete whistled. Myka turned and gave him a look.

"Men, I swear."

"What?" Said Pete. "I was just amazed at how long this tunnel is."

"Sure."

Myka made her way to the floor of the tunnel and turned off the penlight, handing it back to Pete. Drawing her own flashlight, she turned it on and the pair made their way down the tunnel.

"This tunnel must be well over hundreds of years old, we could be the first ones down here in years." Myka wondered aloud as she cast her flashlight along the walls of the tunnel, fascinated by this discovery of theirs.

"Could have been built for the days of the French Revolution," Said Pete. "That ladder didn't look that old though. Maybe they used it during the Nazi occupation as well. I would have loved to have been in the Marines back then. My grandfather used to tell me stories about the war as a kid."

Myka smiled softly as she cast a glance in her partner's direction, from way he spoke of his grandfather it sounded like hero worship. "You really admired him didn't you?"

"It's partly why I joined up," Pete said quietly. "Turns up here."

Rounding the corner towards the right, the pair saw another stretch of long hallway fashioned from timber and stone. The air was surprisingly fresh, if not slightly musty. Pete felt a little bit of breeze coming from the length of the hallway.

"Must lead outside."

"Let's find out shall we?"

The pair moved down the tunnel slowly going more than halfway down. Suddenly both of them stopped and turned around, going back perhaps six feet. There one section of the wall, about three feet wide and as tall as the tunnel itself, appeared to be fashioned entirely from timbers. They examined the wall with their flashlights and then looked at each other.

Pete tapped on the timbers with the back of his knife. It was solid, but he could feel it giving way slightly with each tap. Pete handed his flashlight to Myka and stowed his knife before putting his shoulder to the timbers. A cloud of dust issued forth causing both of them to cough. Pete tried again and got another cloud of dust.

Myka covered her mouth as she coughed on the dust, and she turned away, blinking it from her eyes, as her partner charged at the beams again with his shoulder much the way a quarterback would charge through the opposing team on a football field.

"Maybe we should try and find another way, unless we choke to death first?" Myka suggested.

A sudden creaking noise came forth from the timbers and then two collapsed inward followed by another and then the last two. Each piece of wood was roughly a foot thick and had been held together by leather straps nailed to the back sides.

"Just takes a little Marine know-how to get things done."

"Oo-rah." Myka replied in jest as she hit his chest with her fist lightly.

"After you, milady." Pete gestured.

The two found themselves in a smaller room facing another, this time door-sized, hatch.

"Seriously?" Remarked Myka.

"Looks like."

"What could be back here though? Why would the key be down here?" She asked as she turned back to Pete.

"Maybe it's a back way into the place?"

"Only one way to find out, let's crack it open." Myka rubbed her hands together and she placed her hands on the hatch wheel. "Here, this'll probably be like the last one, c'mere."

Pete stood behind Myka. He cracked his knuckles before he put his hands on the hatch wheel, and nodded. "Ready?" Myka asked him as she turned her head towards Pete.

"Ready, if you are." Myka nodded and gripped the hatch wheel tightly and she gave a hard tug, as did Pete. This hatch wheel proved slightly less stubborn thankfully, if marginally. With a loud creak, the door unlocked, and they pulled the door open.

The door opened to reveal a small room also fashioned of stone except for the back wall. The back wall was made of metal and was riveted in some places. Pete and Myka looked at it and then each other. Pete shrugged.

"A dead end?" asked Myka.

"I...don't know," Said Pete. "That would just be...lame."

Myka turned towards Pete, her neck scrunched slightly.

"I'm just saying it wouldn't make sense."

Pete examined the wall, feeling around the edges. This wall made little to no sense to him. Myka stood back and watched for a few moments and then she joined in as well. Pete and Myka studied the wall for a few minutes and then Myka stood away from the wall, a hand over her eyes.

"I don't know Pete, it's built solid, I don't think we're going to get any further."

"Ok, maybe we screwed up," Said Pete. "Let's follow the tunnel outside and see if we can find something else."

Myka nodded and stood up slowly, and she shook her head. Shame, just when it seemed as though they were making real progress.

Pete stood up, using the wall as a brace. As he turned, his hand bumped one of the rivets and it rattled. Pete stopped as Myka walked towards the hatchway. Turning, Pete touched the rivet again.

"Pete, what are you doing?"

"Hang on a second."

Pete turned the rivet and it spun easily. He then grabbed the rivet and pulled on it to see what would happen. It came out slowly and then Pete saw that it was attached to a chain. He pulled a little more and heard something come loose. Myka was now standing beside him.

"What was that?" She asked.

"I don't know."

Pete looked through the hole where the rivet had been and saw that it opened up into another room. Placing the rivet slightly back into its slot, he used it as a handle to see if he could open the wall. To his surprise it slid back with the effort.

"Okay..." Pete said quietly.

The pair walked into the room, their flashlights on. The beams of their lights revealed many different items. Paintings, statues, a series of small metal cases and a few ancient swords. Pete looked around and smiled.

"Myka, I think we're in the vault...!"

"If we're in the vault…the key we have to find it!"

"Right, the key!" Said Pete. "Where would the key be?"

Pete walked around the vault looking at the shelves. He saw some coins, a series of small silver statues, some ivory carvings set with some precious stones and other trinkets as he walked down the line of shelves. He found a stone carving that looked like a miniature Easter Island head.

"The stuff people collect." He muttered to himself.

"Tell me about it." She remarked as she spied a garish looking Faberge egg. "Anything?"

"Nothing." Said Pete. "Did you find it?"

"I'm starting to suspect it might not even be down here, there's nothing much of interest." She called out.

"Me either." Said Pete as he continued to examine the shelves. Then he stopped abruptly. "Strike that. I think I found it."

Myka was at his side almost instantly and they both focused their flashlights on a small glass case that held the other half of Voltaire's Key. Pete reached for the case and lifted the cover, snagging the key. He handed it to Myka to secure and then placed the cover back.

"All right, let's get out of here."

"We'll be leaving, but you won't."


	15. Chapter 15

The two agents turned around to spy Nariko and Pierre. Nariko flashed them both a wicked smile as she held out her hand. "Now if you'll be so kind just hand over the key."

"You know, the smile would work better if you put your eyes into it more."

In an instant Pete found his arm wrenched behind his back, Nariko's knife poised at his throat. "Or we could just give you the key…" Pete grunted out. Nariko smiled at Myka, who stood with her weapon trained on Pierre.

"You're in no position to negotiate milady, either my partner here disposes of you, or you give us the key." Said Pierre.

Nariko smiled as she turned to Pete. "Shame, I'd hate to melt a handsome fellow like you."

"I'm not real happy about the idea myself..."

"How do we know if we give you the key, you won't kill us?" Replied Myka her eyes narrowing.

Pierre just flashed Myka a grin that made her feel cold to her bones.

"You don't." Replied Nariko calmly, her eyes as cold as river stones as she held Myka's unwavering gaze. "Now if you don't want me to melt your partner, I suggest you do as I say."

As though to add emphasis to her point, she stepped down hard on the back of Pete's left knee, and she pressed the tip of the blade to his throat. "What's it going to be?"

"Could we do this without the whole knee thing?" Pete said. "Old wrestling injury..."

"Let him go first."

"You give me the key first, then I let him go." Nariko cast a glance in Pete's direction briefly, before she set her sights back on Myka. "I'd hate to use this particular blend on him; it's a little more slow acting, very painful. I like to think of it as Devil's Blood."

"Not liking that either..." Grimaced Pete.

Reluctantly Myka handed her gun over before she gave the key to Pierre. He nodded to Nariko who stomped down hard on the back of Pete's knee before she shoved him forward; Pete stumbled as she released her hold. Myka quickly caught her partner, and checked his neck over for injuries. Both turned as Nariko spoke up. "Pleasure doing business with you, oh by the way, you can keep those sound grenades, we still have the blueprints."

Pierre kept his weapon sighted on the two agents as he and Nariko made their exit. "I do hope those silly outfits are designed with warmth in mind, I sense a chill coming on, au revoire." He remarked snidely.

The pair could only stand stock still as they watched the two assassins make their exit. Once they were out of sight both agents bolted after them, the wall locked into place as the two assassins left ahead of them.

"NO!" Pete screamed out as he smashed his fist against the iron wall.

"You won't get away with this! We will find you!" Myka yelled out.

"Not only are we locked in here but they have our Tesla and my knee is acting up!" Said Pete as he examined this side of the wall. "Damn it!"

"Never mind that, we have to find a way out of here!" Retorted Myka.

Myka and Pete worked feverishly to find the mechanism to opening the wall on this side. They spent a few minutes before Pete realized something.

"Why is a soccer trophy here?"

"Football." Myka corrected him.

"Its soccer, even the English used the term back in the day." Said Pete, his tone frustrated. "Anyway! Trophy in vault with expensive things?"

Grabbing the trophy Pete moved it and heard something click like he did before. The wall started to move and he and Myka burst out into the hallway and ran. When they reached the hatch they found it closed and seemingly impossible to open.

"Damn it, they used us, Myka." Said Pete. "Just followed us right in, letting us do the grunt work."

"Tell me about, how did they even manage to get the jump on us?" She replied as she shook her head, no doubt peeved at this sudden turn of events.

"Come on, we need to get back to the car." Said Pete as he turned and headed towards the presumed exit of the tunnel. "I left the Farnsworth and thankfully the hotel key in my jacket. Assuming they didn't jack the car, we should still be cool."

"Even still we should head back to the room, make sure the place wasn't ransacked. They still only have half a key."

"And I need ice for my knee." Said Pete. "Man that chick was cruel. She's lucky she was hot."

Myka glared at her partner, one eyebrow raised. "Seriously?"

"You know, hot in a she-wants-to-melt-you kind of way," Said Pete. "You have a way better smile."

"Flattery will get you nowhere Mr. Bond." She replied dryly.

"Nicer butt too."

Myka grabbed the front of Pete's vest, and she turned on her heel spinning him into the wall. She pressed her lips to his, giving him a long, drawn out kiss. Myka pulled back, and let out a shaky breath as she rested her forehead against his. She held his gaze as she framed his face in her hands. "For someone so annoying, you're lucky I think you're pretty damned cute."

"Charming, debonair, Sean Connery kind of way?" Pete asked.

"I think you're hot, in a Matt Damon kind of way." She replied as she offered him a small smile.

"Oh," Started Pete. "Thanks. I guess. When we get home, after this mission is over, what do you say you, me, and a bowl of popcorn curl up on the couch, have us that Crocodile Dundee marathon?" Pete whispered as he softly nuzzled her nose. "If that's not good enough, I'll even suffer through that chick flick with Hugh Jackman with you."

Myka fought back a sniffle as she smiled. "I'd like that."

"Cool." Said Pete.

The two continued running through the tunnel, as they did the air become noticeably cooler. Eventually they came upon yet another dead end, both groaned at the sight, finding nothing but rock and stone on either side of them.

"I feel cool air; something has to be here..."

"Hey look, there." Myka knelt down and spied an old iron grate, she held her hand over the opening and felt a cool breeze, and she waved her partner over.

"This must lead outside, come on help me pry it loose."

"Seems kind of small..." Pete said.

"Do you have a better idea?" She commented as she turned her attention back to the grate, and she grasped hold of one end, as her partner grasped hold of the other end. Working as a unit, both moved the grate to the side. Using their flashlights both peered down the opening.

"I'll go first, Doctor Jones." She teased as she clutched the flashlight between her teeth. Carefully, Myka lowered herself inside the small opening and dropped down, feet first. Myka landed with a small splash as her feet found water. As she shined her light on the walls of the small space, she found a network of piping. The water beneath her feet sloshed as she looked around, a pair of small beady eyes looked up at the agent before darting off into the shadows.

"You can come down now!" She called up to Pete.

Pete dropped down through the opening after scrunching up his shoulders. He moved his flashlight around a bit, looking down at the ground and the water.

"Rats."

"Yes, but if you don't bother them they won't bother you." Myka replied.

"No, rats, I think I dropped my multi-tool."

"Well it belongs to the rats now."

"Well, you know how Artie is about us breaking and losing things."

"We'll compensate him for the loss, right now we need to get out of here."

"Right then," Started Pete in a Connery accent. "Stay behind me Ms. Moneypenny."

Pete moved off, following the direction of the airflow. The trip was damp, wet and dirty. An occasional rat scurried by underfoot but things were uneventful beyond that. Reaching the exit to the tunnel, the pair found themselves under a bridge. They were both chilled to the bone and covered with mud but they were alive.

"No way we're going back to the car like this," Said Myka. "We need to find a place to clean up."

"You think they have a Y around here?" Pete asked.

"How would that help me?" Myka shot back.

"I'd keep you covered," Said Pete as he flashed a playful wink her way.

"You're impossible!"

"Yeah, but you're smiling."

"Shut up," Said Myka, playfully punching Pete in the arm. "Seriously though."

"Well, we may as well take a look around," Pete replied. "Maybe someone can help us."

"Two mud covered would-be thieves?" Myka replied as she gestured to their outfits.

"Maybe we could get away with saying we're cave spelunkers?" Suggested Pete before adding as an afterthought. "We could always jump in the nearest fountain?"

Shaking her head, Myka walked over to where he stood and she helped him with his vest. "Here, get your vest off, if anyone asks we'll just play it off like we sampled a little too much wine after a night on the town."

Myka divested herself of her black leather jacket as Pete helped her remove it. It had been one of her favorites, and it was now likely ruined. At least their shirts weren't covered with mud; it was mainly their pants and boots that got the worst of it.

Pete waved a hand in front of his face. "Nice perfume, what is that eau du canal?"

"Oh shut up, this wouldn't be half as bad if you hadn't nearly leapt into my arms when that rat climbed on your shoulder." She quipped.

"That was a big rat..." Said Pete, recalling the event.

"Uh-huh, big giant, monster rat." She teased him.

"Come on, let's get going."

Casting a glancing around the area, Myka spied a set of old stone fountains built into the walls of the bridge. They were very small, about the size of a bathroom sink, but clear water was flowing from the spouts, which were stationed about three feet over the basins. Myka walked over to one of the fountains and dipped her hands in the water, before she decided to just let the water hit her face. Stepping back, she reached behind her head and retied her hair into a low ponytail. She looked up as she heard Pete approach.

"What?"

"Man that's hot."

Rolling her eyes, Myka finished tying her hair and she stepped aside so he could use the fountain to clean up. "Where's our stuff?"

"I stashed it in that alleyway over there," Said Pete as he let the cool water run over his face and neck. Standing up to his full height he swiped his hands across his face. "When we grab the car, we'll swing by and pick it up."

"Not much else we could do. C'mon lets get back to the car, and head back to the hotel, it's freezing out here." She remarked as she rubbed her arms for warmth.

The two drove back to the hotel after snagging their gear and relocating their rental car. They'd likely have to detail the interior later, but right now they had more pressing issues at hand. Several minutes later, the pair found themselves back at the hotel. Quietly the two made their way up to their room, and made a cautious entry. Pete & Myka nodded to each other before they conducted a thorough search of the room, going about their separate ways. Myka called out to Pete as she set the case down on the coffee table.

"The sound grenades?" She questioned him.

"Right where we left them. Nariko and Pierre weren't here."

"That's a relief, and the other half of Voltaire's Key?"

Pete held out a foil-Mylar bag and waved his hand in front of it. "Safe and sound."

"Good, now to just get the other half back, and the mask, and the blueprints, and our Tesla."

"While we're at it we better leave the maid service a hefty tip, that or light a few candles."

The buzzing of the Farnsworth interrupted their conversation, and Pete pulled the device from his pocket as he kicked off his boots, Myka doing likewise. Artie's face appeared on the screen as Pete flipped the Farnsworth open.

"The other half of the key, did you find it?"

"Not exactly..." Pete said slowly.

"What do you mean 'not exactly', and what happened to you both, you look like you just crawled out of a canal." Artie observed, suddenly noticing their bedraggled appearances.

"A storm run-off tunnel, more likely." Pete commented.

"They got it all, our guns, the Tesla, the other half of key." Started Myka.

"What did you do, just hand it over to them!" Remarked Artie, his expression baffled.

"It was either that or they'd kill us both, starting with Pete." Myka replied quietly, her tone somber.

Pete wrapped his arm around Myka's waist, he could tell she was still reeling from that encounter, even if she hadn't come outright and said it.

Artie removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose, on one hand he was upset that they lost the artifact, but on the other hand he didn't envy what either agent had just gone through having to deal with the two assassins. From what he had gathered of their history both took immense pleasure in toying with their targets.

It wasn't until several moments later that Artie finally spoke up. "What about the sound grenades? The other half of the key, the one you got from Abella?"

"Still in our possession," Pete said. "We have no leads on Nariko and Pierre though."

"Claudia programmed a tracking device in the Tesla; I was completely against the idea at first, though in this case, it might just prove useful."

"A homing device?" Pete said. "Sweet."

"Exactly, alright now listen, the safe house location I originally provided to you both, you'll need to head over there and get outfitted. I know an agent, Francois Luc, he's retired, but he owes me a favor or two. Talk to him, he'll provide you with what you need."

Artie tapped away at the keys on his computer, "I'll forward you some contact information, and I'll get back to you as soon as we can zero in on Nariko & Pierre's location."

"Right on."

"For now stay safe, the minute I learn anything new, I'll contact you ASAP."

"Thanks Artie." The duo replied in unison.

Artie shut off his Farnsworth and Pete and Myka did the same. Pete put the Farnsworth back in his coat and stretched.

"Shower first," He started. "Then we grab some to-go food and head over to the safe house. We can rest up there while we talk to this Francois guy."

"Good idea, we have to finish this, things are getting out of hand."

"Rough night, huh?" Chuckled Pete.

"Pete, that's not funny, we're lucky those two didn't kill us, so forgive me when I say my nerves are shot!" She snapped at him, Myka frowned as she stepped closer to him, "You know what let me take another look at your neck just to be safe, I swear if that woman crosses us again I'll—"

"Hey, easy," Pete said, raising his hands in a placating manner. "I know, I was the one with the knife to his neck. Look, it's not that serious. I survived the Saracen Spine thingy. It's part of the job, Myka. Besides, they just wanted what we had found."

"She could have killed you, I could have lost you tonight…" She replied as she bit her lip.

"Hey, you had my back," Smiled Pete. "I wasn't worried."

Myka framed his face in her hands and she kissed him softly. "I still was, I can't help it."

"C'mon cowgirl," Said Pete. "Let's get washed up."

"Only if you agree to warm me up." She replied as she nuzzled his nose. Pete flashed Myka an impish grin, his hands coming to rest on her waist as he pulled her closer, "I think that can be arranged…" He whispered as he lowered his lips to hers.


	16. Chapter 16

A rousing, thankfully warm shower later, the two were feeling far better. They dressed in rugged attire and packed a secondary bag with spare clothing. They were not going to get caught out in the cold again this time.

Within minutes they were back in their car eating sliced apples and peanuts. Each of them had a bottle of water and a bottle of green tea. They had been going at it for some time now and the game was not over yet. They stifled yawns and downed the food they had with them as they drove back to Artie's safe house.

It was empty when they arrived and the pair entered quietly and did a sweep. The safe house was empty and the pair found an isolated room in which to hole up. They talked more about Crocodile Dundee and their favorite foods, music, books and so on to stay awake. It was not long after they arrived that they heard a car drive up.

Going to a window, Pete saw a lone figure come out of the car and go to the trunk. Two large bags were removed and then the figure approached the house. Pete could see that it was a man and when he got closer he could see that he was an old man. By the description sent to them by Artie, it was Francois. Pete cautiously opened the door and helped the man bring the bags inside.

"You must be Peter, I'm Francois." He smiled at the younger man.

"Just Pete's fine." Replied Pete with a slight smile, he nodded at Myka as they stepped over to a nearby table and set the bags atop the surface. "This is my partner Myka."

She smiled as she held out her hand, "Francois, I'm sorry we couldn't have met under better circumstances."

"Nonsense, I'm happy to be of assistance to Arthur," He smiled as he took her hand, and kissed the back in greeting, "Myka, je suis plu de faire votre connaissance."

"Et vous aussi, Francois." She replied with a blush.

"Aww, she blushed." Said Pete.

The trio shared a laugh, before turning to their attention the bags that Francois had brought them. "Arthur informed me of your situation, I believe I have some things here that will prove useful." Reaching into one of the bags he withdrew a set of reinforced briefcases, and laid them onto the table along with a Tesla. "This was mine, rest assured it will still fire."

Myka inspected the Tesla carefully, it was very well maintained. "What is in these other cases?" She asked as she gestured to the second case.

Francois nodded, and opened it, revealing a number of small vials. "Antidote, should you need it, hopefully not." Francois remarked as he handed one of the vials to the Pete. "It will counteract the effects of Nariko's poison."

"Do you drink it?"

"Unfortunately you must inject it directly into the heart, otherwise it will not work," Francois' voice turned lower as he spoke, "Devil's Blood was designed to render the victim comatose minutes after contact. You're fortunate she did not use it against you, its effects are dastardly on the body to say the least."

"To say the least..." Echoed Pete.

Reaching into the other bag, Francois produced two protective vests and a similar briefcase, slightly larger, which he opened. "Firearms," He gestured to the bag, "The necessary ammunition is in the bag,"

Pete opened the case that held the firearms and stopped. Inside were two black revolvers with brown, checkered grips. Pete pulled one from the case and felt the weight, examining the weapon over.

"It is a Manurhin MR-73," said Francois. "It is popular with our police here. A very accurate, sturdy weapon."

"I kinda like it," said Pete as he loaded both revolvers.

"An unusual choice, but better than nothing," Remarked Myka as she watched Pete work with the revolvers. She turned her attention back to the elderly Frenchman. "Francois we cannot thank you enough for helping us."

"Not at all, if you don't mind my saying you both look absolutely exhausted, there are bunks in the spare room, bit close quarters, but it is comfortable, feel free to make use of it. I will keep watch until you are ready."

"Merci." Said Pete as he handed a holstered MR-73 to Myka, noticing that she had taken the Tesla.

The two agents made their way to the back room where they found the bunks. The room was a little cramped, but they did not care. Settling down on a bed, they fell asleep almost instantly. The night had been long and tiresome for them both.

Pete dreamed in black and white. Seeing himself in some kind of bizarre noir film involving French spies and femme fatales. Myka looked good in a cocktail dress with a plunging neckline.

Three hours later, both agents were awakened by Francois. He handed them a small cup of coffee and a pastry. They were still tired but at least they felt better than they had. The warm coffee and food was helping as well.

"I also have blackberries in warm milk on the table in the kitchen," Said Francois. "I apologize for waking you so soon, but Arthur has found your quarry. Time was of the essence."

"No biggie," Said Pete drowsily. "We're rested, armed and medicated against body-melting poisons."

"Do you have our briefing?" Questioned Myka, no doubt as equally tired as her partner.

"I have the briefing ready for you," Francois said. "We'll talk over coffee when you are ready."

"I'm ready for the briefing, what about you Pete?" Replied Myka.

"I'm all right, Myka," Said Pete. "Used to light sleeping. You okay?"

Myka gently grasped his hand, "As well can be expected, to be honest, I'm a little worried."

"Well, don't worry," Said Pete. "We have them now."

"You both still look rather tired, I'll make some fresh coffee, you two take a little more time to collect yourselves." Francois remarked as he stood up from the table, taking the half empty coffee pot with him into the kitchen.

The two agents ate their breakfast in silence; the warm coffee warmed their tired bodies, slowly bringing them back around. Francois returned a few minutes later with a fresh pot of coffee, and he refilled both agents' cups before he sat down.

"You're looking better, now are you ready for your briefing?" He questioned the pair.

"Definitely," Pete replied. "I, for one, am tired of letting these guys call the shots."

Francois produced a map, and laid it on top of the table. He gestured to the map as he spoke, "Arthur was able to track down Pierre and Nariko, to this location here," Myka and Pete peered at the map closely.

"The Place de la Bastille?" Myka frowned as she studied the map more closely, "This can't be right, it's an entire plaza, there's dozens of buildings in that area. How would we know which one they're hiding out in?" Questioned Myka as she glance in Pete's direction.

"Myka, what if they're not above ground, what if they're below it, the rats nesting with the rats?" Pete replied as he tapped at the map with his finger.

"The last place that they'd expect anyone to check, the sewers." Pete nodded, resting his hands on his hips, "That's where I'd hide, if I was a rat, or an art thief." He added lamely.

Myka nodded. "It's possible, there are still ruins running underneath the city streets, remember the ruins back at The La Reaux? There are likely ruins no one knows about that belonged to the original structure of The Bastille."

Pete grinned in reply, "That's right, who called it?" Myka gave his shoulder a playful swat in response. "Now we just have to get in there without being seen." He stated, his tone turning serious.

Francois nodded as he looked at the pair. "I may have an idea for you." Tracing his finger along the map, he stopped at a certain area and tapped it. "Here."

"What is it?" Asked Pete.

"It is a storm drain," Started Francois. "It is distant from the ruins, but it is your best option. It is off the main streets."

"It's a hike, but, yeah, I think he's right," Pete commented as he studied the map. "How did you find it?"

"I was a Warehouse agent," Francois replied. "Not only did I have to find artifacts, I also often had to smuggle them out. It pays to know such things."

Pete looked at Myka. "I guess we have all we need."

"I'm ready if you are."

"I'll load the gear in the car."

Pete picked up the bag with their vests, vials of the antidote for the Devil's Blood toxin used by Nariko and other items they would need. The new pistol was already on his hip. He put the bag in the trunk of the vehicle and started the car. He studied a street map given to him by Francois and plotted out the shortest route possible.

They had the location but this would be no easy task. He and Myka were at an end run now. It was all or nothing. They had Pierre and Nariko to face, but also the Iron Man. They were taking their half of the key with them to unite it with the other half the assassins had taken. It was risky, but they had to play it this way. It would be their best shot at removing and neutralizing the artifact quickly.

Pete looked up as Myka and Francois came out of the house and approached the car. Myka got in the passenger side and rolled down her window. Francois leaned in.

"I had a boat placed below the entrance you are using," he started. "It will help you move more swiftly through the sewers. It should be there by the time you arrive."

"Thanks." Said Pete.

"Merci beaucoup Francois," Replied Myka.

"La bonne chance mes amis." Francois replied before turning away and returning to the house.

"We'll need it." Said Pete quietly before he drove away with Myka.


	17. Chapter 17

It was still dark out by the time both agents had arrived at their destination, it would be awhile still until sunrise. Parking their car in a secure location, both climbed out and made their way to the trunk, where they suited up. Between them both, they had six sound grenades. There was no telling if one alone would be enough to subdue the Iron Man, but neither wanted to take chances.

Similar precautions had been taken with the antidote.

"You ready to bag us an artifact?" Myka asked as she closed up the trunk of the car.

"There's just one more thing I need to take care of first."

Myka frowned as she looked over their gear, before she turned to face her partner.

"Wh—" Myka was silenced as Pete pulled her close for a kiss. Pulling back, Myka smiled at him slightly, and she rested her hands on his shoulders.

"What was that for?"

"Luck." Pete winked at her as he gave her one of his devil may care grins.

"Don't get cocky now." She replied as she playfully punched his shoulder.

"I could make a joke, but I won't," Started Pete. "Ok, the storm drain is down this alley. Hopefully that boat is there."

"Hopefully." Nodded Myka.

The two agents made their way down the alley. The ground was wet and littered with garbage as twice Myka had to peel an old candy bar wrapper off of her shoe. Turning left at the end of the main alley, they walked behind a small building. Roughly ten feet ahead of them they saw the storm drain.

"Good, it's out of sight."

Pete kneeled down and gripped the bars in his gloved hands and gave the grate a mighty pull. It was slow to give way at first, but it came loose. Using his flashlight, Pete scoped out the ladder and some of the surrounding walkway at the bottom.

"Looks clear," He started. "Not flooded and no sign of rats."

"You sure you didn't scare 'em all off?" Myka asked in jest.

"Funny." Said Pete.

Putting the flashlight between his teeth, Pete made his way through the storm drain and down the ladder to the walkway. Indeed, there were no rats yet. He did a small recon to make sure they had no surprises in store and then returned to the ladder as Myka made her way down. He pulled a small map from his vest and looked it over using his light.

"Looks like we go this way and make a right."

"Do you see the boat anywhere?"

"Yeah, the boat is here." Pete said as he moved his light to reveal it.

"Good, this makes our trip a little bit easier."

"Let's get started."

Myka climbed onboard the wooden boat, and worked at untying the poles as Pete guided it into deeper water. After climbing in, Pete took one of the paddles and started using it to push them along. Myka joined in. The paddles were quieter than an engine and they would not give themselves away. Following the map for guidance the pair navigated the waterways, garbage littered the area. The further inwards they drove, they were greeted by stone debris.

"Looks like it's getting kind of rough for a boat." Said Pete.

"I'd say so." Replied Myka.

Pete set the paddle down inside the boat and examined the map. They had gotten a good distance out of the boat.

"I think we should stop here, leave the boat, navigate the rest of the way on foot." Nodded Myka.

"Works for me."

Hopping over the side, both agents found themselves in near waist deep water, and carefully guided the boat over to what had likely once been a series of pillars and secured their ride. Wading the rest of the way, the pair moved along swiftly, the water becoming less shallow as they advanced closer and closer to their position. Quietly as possible, both made their way to shore on a low stone staircase flooded over with water.

"This would have been way more fun if we weren't wearing clothing."

"Focus Romeo."

The pair quietly ascended the staircase, hanging tight to the walls, using the shadows as cover. Both crouched down as they neared the top of the staircase, and they observed their surroundings with a watchful eye.

"Looks like it splits off here," Said Pete as he moved in close to Myka, showing her the map. "I'll take the left, you go right."

Myka gave a silent nod of approval. She turned her head slightly as Pete pulled away, her face came to rest lightly against his, and she whispered softly, her voice barely audible, save for his own ears, "Be careful."

"Always." Pete said quietly.

Pete quietly disappeared into the shadows of the dark left hallway. There was no telling where they were now. Pete wondered if they were exploring a section of the sewers that had been under The Bastille. There was no telling what all had happened here back in those days. Then or back in the Second World War. Maybe members of the French Resistance had walked these same tunnels.

Right now though, Pete was wondering if a certain pair of international assassins had walked this way recently.

He had not heard anything out of the ordinary yet. Just the ambient sounds one would expect in a man-made underground cavern system. Pete looked over to his right and then shook his head. There was a wall there, he could not see Myka. He could feel her though. He wondered how she was doing.

The hallways were formed of stone and brick. Lighting was accomplished through very pitiful bulbs hanging every ten feet or so. They did not give off much light, but it was harsh nonetheless. A harsh forty watts, maybe. Every five feet there were indentations in the walls. Recesses deep enough for a man to use as cover.

Pete slowly and carefully made his way down the hallway, listening. His new .357 revolver at the ready, his flashlight prepared but not currently lit. If he saw someone coming, he wanted to be able to simply slip into the darkness between bulbs.

He and Myka had been separated for perhaps twenty minutes when Pete froze.

"Music?" He said to himself.

Pete held in place and continued to listen. It sounded Asian in tune and word. That struck Pete as odd given that they were in France in an old section of the sewers. Keeping low, Pete moved forward quietly.

Myka drew to a halt as the sound of music met her ears, suddenly filling the small quiet space of the ruins. It was decidedly Mandarin in origin, and without a doubt a very, very old song at that.

Myka hung close to the wall, her hand resting on the heel of the Tesla, as she drew closer and closer to the music's source. Around the corner she could spy an old victorola sitting atop a shattered stone pillar, playing. Unholstering the Tesla, Myka crept forward, the only source of illumination coming from several lit oil lamps.

Carefully, Myka reached for a sound grenade. Her thumb poised on the pin, she held her breath as she listened to the haunting lyrics. The singer spoke of a love lost to the winds, too fast, too soon. Despite herself she could not help but feel a slight kinship to the lyrics. Holding her breath, Myka blinked back tears, the scar over her own heart had long since healed but like with many an old wound, it still stung from time to time.

Popping loose the pin, Myka let the grenade roll silently to the floor, a lone tear slipped past her eyes, as she listened to final lyrics of the song, just before the grenade sounded off.

Pete watched as Myka loosed a boombox grenade, letting it roll towards the two assassins. The woman was singing with the music to the man. It struck Pete as very odd, the whole scene. So different from what he had expected. There again, what was he to expect? Perhaps he saw them as simply soulless machines due to their line of work. He guessed even they did not just stand around waiting to kill.

The Iron Man was in a corner in the room, wrapped in chain. He appeared to be asleep. Another oddity in this mix.

Ducking back behind the wall, Pete waited for the boombox grenade to go off. It did just seconds after he went behind cover. He heard the surprised yells from the two assassins before they collapsed and then he swung out from behind the wall. That was when he heard a third yell.

The Iron Man stood and screamed up to the ceiling as he worked at his bonds. The chains jangled and groaned until they finally gave way.

"Myka!" Yelled Pete. "Cover!"

Pete prepared and then loosed another boombox grenade, letting it drop and roll right at the feet of the Iron Man. It detonated just as the armored foe reached down to pick it up. When the dust cleared, Pete saw the Iron Man wobbling a little on his feet. Myka sprang up and fired the Tesla at him. This was surprisingly effective. Perhaps the metal armor was channeling the electrical energy.

The Iron Man picked up a large chunk of rock and threw it at Myka.

Myka fired off the Tesla at the rock, shattering it to pieces in mid-flight, and her attacker roared in agitation, before he stomped off in her direction, his steps booming loudly in the small space of the ruins.

Pete aimed his revolver at an unarmored section of the Iron Man and fired. The round struck home and caused the target to yell out in pain, but it did no other discernable damage.

"Crap." Pete muttered.

At the very least it turned him away from Myka.

The Iron Man focused his attention on Pete, punching loose a section of the wall, knocking loose several chunks of stone and wood in the process, reducing the fragments to dust. He stomped towards the other agent, his steps slow yet focused.

"Keep him busy! I'll try to find the other half of the key!" Myka shouted as she raced over to where the two assassins lay unconscious, already snapping on a pair of purple gloves.

"Don't let me hold you up!" Shouted Pete as he dodged away from the pursuing Iron Man.

Myka hurriedly dug through the pair's pockets, the other half of the key had to be here but where? Her fingers clasped around something hard and metallic in Nariko's coat pocket, and she quickly withdrew the object, it was the other half of the key, but something felt decidedly wrong.

Gasping she fell forward on her hands, the key clenched in her hand, her chest felt tight, her heart felt as though it was trapped in a vice, the ability to breathe growing more difficult with each passing breath, but how? The key, had she laced it with the same poison she had planned to use against Pete?

Reaching inside her vest pocket, Myka withdrew two vials of the antidote that Francois had given them. Dumping out the vial's contents onto the key, Myka turned her attention back to her partner who was still duking it out with their masked foe. Even with his boundless energy she could tell Pete was tiring. Meanwhile their masked foe had seemingly infinite stamina, tearing through the surrounding debris effortlessly.

"Damn it!" Pete shouted as he dodged a stone projectile, only to get pelted by the debris.

The battle was not going well. Gunshots did nothing to his foe. Pete was breathing hard from his effort of running and fighting and dodging.

"PETE!" Myka screamed out, drawing her partner's attention. With all her might, she flung the other half of the key in his direction, sending it skidding across the stone floor. Myka's vision swam as she fell onto her side, with each passing second she was finding it harder and harder to breathe. Shakily she popped off the top of the vial, and fit it into the syringe. Weakly she tore aside her Kevlar vest, and with her last breath she plunged the needle into her heart, collapsing as she hit the stone floor, her partner's cries falling on deaf ears.


	18. Chapter 18

"MYKA!" Pete shouted, his voice echoing inside the walls.

Myka did not move and Pete's way was blocked by the Man in the Iron Mask. Pete's blood was racing in his veins and felt hot like acid boiling inside of him. He was scared that Myka was dying and angry that she was so close and yet so out of reach.

"No, Myka!" Said Pete as he shook his head while talking aloud but to himself. "Not today. When we go, we go together. You can't die before me, I won't let that happen!"

Raising his revolver, Pete fired a shot directly at the head of the approaching Iron Man. The bullet impacted heavily and created a ringing that echoed throughout the room. Like striking a bell. The Iron Man paused for a moment and seemed confused, so Pete ran.

Skidding across the dirt-covered stone floor, Pete stopped next to Myka and pushed the plunger on the syringe. The antidote for the Devil's Blood rushed into her heart. Hopefully it was not too late. Snapping on a pair of purple gloves, Pete put the two pieces of Voltaire's Key together and felt them snugly latch together. He had the complete artifact now.

Standing, Pete fired another shot at the head of the Iron Man and then prepped another boombox grenade. He set it off and rolled it on the ground between the Iron Man's legs so that it stopped just behind him. Pete grabbed Myka and dragged her behind some rubble, shielding her with his body. The Iron Man stopped and turned around just as the grenade went off.

Myka lay still in Pete's arms, her form unmoving, was he too late? Using his teeth, Pete tore off one purple glove from his hand, and he gently touched his hand to Myka's face, "Myka, Myka, don't do this to me, please," He whispered pleadingly, "Come back to me angel," Pete sucked in his breath as he brushed a stray curl away from her eyes, his heart pounded, feeling like solid stone in his chest. He gently kissed her forehead as he held her close, his dark brown eyes watering over with unshed tears. "Please Myka."

All concept of time was lost to Pete as he sat crouched on the floor, Myka in his arms, silently unwilling to accept the cruel fate that had been laid before him. She was his greatest strength, and ultimately, his greatest weakness, and without her…

Pete angrily shoved the thought aside, exhaling shakily as he lifted his head up, at that moment, without warning, Myka's body contorted in his arms. She gasped, reminiscent of a fish out of water, her eyes rolled back in her head as she took in lungfuls of air. For the briefest of instants, her eyes appeared a shade of rust, tarnished and coppery. The color faded as her breathing became more even, and she smiled up at Pete weakly, "Hey partner."

"Hey," Said Pete with a slight smile. "C'mon, I think I have Big Boy stunned."

"The key?" She asked as he wrapped her hand in his and he pulled her up to her feet.

"It's whole again," Said Pete as he held it up. "C'mon! We need to do this fast. I don't think this place can take too many more boomboxes!"

"Hurry!" Pete & Myka ran over to the downed Iron Man, who was now on his knees clutching his head, screaming in agony. "Pete! Use the key! Quick!"

Pete walked up quietly and inserted the key in the lock on the side of the helmet and turned the key. An audible click was heard and the iron mask opened with what almost appeared to be sparks and fell away heavily onto the floor. Pete quickly pulled the mask away from the man that now lay on the ground.

"Man that is heavy..."

Myka ran over to the downed man, and checked his pulse, he had passed out but he was still breathing, not to mention he looked like he was in dire need of a shower and a shave.

"How long do you suppose he had this thing on him?"

"Got me," Said Pete as he pulled out his Farnsworth. "Artie...we got the complete key and the iron mask. We need this stuff handled ASAP."

"Francois and I are on it," Artie started. "We have been tracking your Farnsworth. We'll have a van there in a few minutes. Keep Voltaire's Key in the lock!"

"Roger that." Nodded Pete as he closed the Farnsworth.

"He's going to need medical attention, but for right now he's just out of it." Remarked Myka.

"Pierre and Nariko, are they still out there?" She realized suddenly.

"I don't..." Started Pete as he looked up.

A large section of bricks collapsed from the ceiling and hit the floor heavily. More followed and then more debris came down, a cloud of dust spilling throughout the room.

"Myka!" Shouted Pete. "We gotta go! Grab that guy and I'll get the armor! Go go go!"

Myka hoisted the man's arm over her shoulders, and she nodded at Pete, "COME ON!" Hurriedly Myka urged her feet forward, as behind her Pete struggled with the armor.

Pete hefted the armor onto a shoulder and carried it as quickly as he could. The two agents and the former man in the iron mask made their way out of the crumbling section of the sewer.

"Oh man, this is not looking good!" Myka remarked as they made their way back toward where the boat was located. Both jumped backwards as a large piece of debris fell down, smashing the vessel to pieces. "Seriously?" Myka yelled out in disbelief.

"Keep it moving!" Pete shouted above the noise, his shoulder aching. "Hustle, hustle, hustle!"

"Are you suggesting we swim back?"

"No time for debates!" Said Pete. "We swim out or we get crushed by bricks!"

"With that armor you'll drown!" She retorted.

"Maybe not..." Said Pete.

Pulling the key from the lock, Pete tossed it to Myka. With the key gone the iron mask was active again. Being the closest in proximity, it latched onto Pete. Pete gasped as the mask flooded him with memories, flashes, broken bits of imagery. He weaved for a few moments with the impact of it all and then grabbed Myka and the former mask-wearer and began to make his way out of the sewers.

With the armor on, Pete moved effortlessly through the sewers, though Myka was fearful. How long until the powers of the mask would overtake Pete, drive him to madness? She fought back a shiver recalling the last time she squared off against a rage fueled Pete, and the image frightened her. Without thinking, she latched onto his arm protectively, guiding him as they walked, the water sloshing beneath their feet.

Ten minutes journey found the trio once more outside. Pete and Myka heard voices coming from the street above them and made their way slowly up. A large van was parked nearby and Myka saw Francois and two other older men looking around. She smiled in relief. Making their way to the van, Pete stepped inside along with Myka and she used Voltaire's Key to remove the mask.

It thudded heavily on the floor of the van. Pete felt a great weight come off of him, literally and figuratively. It had not been his first choice to don the armor, but he had to. Standing up, he helped one of Francois' men lift the former wearer of the mask onto a stretcher inside the van. Myka stepped out and another man secured the mask.

"So, what now?" Pete asked Francois.

"We shall safeguard the mask to a quiet location where it will be packed for shipment to your warehouse," He started. "The man will be taken to a place and treated as well as watched. I am sure that the Regents will have many questions."

Myka nodded, "I'm sure they will. What of the two assassins though?"

"We will look through the rubble and monitor police reports," Said Francois. "Beyond that, there is nothing to be done for the moment. You two should go and clean up. Get some rest and I will debrief you tomorrow before you leave."

"Thank you again, Francois," Remarked Myka as she held out her hand. "We owe you."

Francois took Myka's hand and gently kissed her fingers. "Think nothing of it, dear lady. You have done more for Paris than I have done for you."

Myka blushed, smiling slightly, "You monsieur are very lucky, keep her close." He stated as he shook Pete's hand.

"I intend to," Said Pete with a slight smile.

"I bid you both adieu." Francois replied as he stepped away from the pair.

Myka turned towards Pete as they watched Francois step into the van, and she gently grasped his hand in hers, as they began to slowly walk away. "So, one more night in Paris huh?" She spoke softly as they looked off in the distance towards the dimming moon. "Been a Hell of a week."

"That it has," Pete commented. "A nice, long, hot shower, some food and a solid night's sleep is what I need."

Myka nodded in agreement, echoing Pete's sentiments, "So, how should we spend our last night in Paris?" Myka replied quietly as he snaked an arm around her waist.

"I believe you made me a promise," Said Pete. "You and me, on the balcony to watch the sunrise."

"You've got yourself a deal," Smiled Myka as she nuzzled his nose softly, and she snuggled closer to him. "I promise it won't be the last sunrise we watch together either."

"Good," Said Pete with a smile.

He and Myka walked back to their hotel as their night made it impossible to use their rental car. After many looks and people turning away, the pair made it back to their room where they showered under hot water for a long time, locked in each other's arms. At sunrise, they stood on the balcony, Myka in Pete's arms. Another job done.

**THE END**


End file.
